Floating in Water
by JuMoFi of the March Hare
Summary: In the small town of Iwatobi, fate brings five girls to the swim club and its members. The dandere, the American fresh meat, the tsundere, the explorer, and the princess. How will their year turn out? Samantha Mueller moves in with her grandmother from her small home in Texas, starting anew as she fights to forget a painful past. Will meeting Makoto put her heart back together?
1. Samantha Mueller

_(J.I.C.) Disclaimer: I don't own Free! or its characters. I only own my OCs. _

_A/N: __***11/13/16 update.** Because I am working on SWaS, another fic of Free!, I am going to let this story go on hiatus for a bit. Please also note that the story will be thoroughly plotted, edited, and trimmed when I come back to this, so anything you read from here on to the latest chapter may not be the same. If you want to get any updates please click on my profile link for the latest news. Thank you for your patience and I'll be seeing you soon! :D_

Chapter One:

_'It'll be a short visit with your grandmother, babe. Soon after you'll be home. It'll feel like a week, I promise.'_

_'Sam, you're grown up now and you need some experience.I know it's not your idea of "visiting" your grandmother, but you'll learn to like it.'_

_'You really are moving, huh?...Then I guess you should know...You see, Brandon and I are...'_

_'Hey, there's something I gotta tell you. I know you'll hate me for this, but Jess-uh, Jessica and I had...so, I can't do this with you anymore...What was your big news again?'_

_Their voices echoed in my head, playing over and over again...and I couldn't say anything. I just sat in the dark while they continued on-_

I sat up in bed as my alarm blared its annoying tune from my dresser. It read in bold numbers: 7:50.

"You have got to be kidding me! I thought I set it for 7:00!" I exclaimed.

I scrambled for the bathroom while slipping on my skirt. My hair sprung up from all different angles in the mirror and yet i had to put on a fricking tie, zip up my skirt, shoes, socks-

_Man, and I have to hurry to catch the bus and I've got only ten minutes..._

Then I looked in the mirror and realized that the medicine cabinet was different. The toothbrush cup wasn't the same color or size, and my backpack wasn't in the hallway.

_Oh, that's right. I'm in Japan, not Texas. Mom and Dad aren't here, and grandma's still in the hospital. There aren't even any buses around here...only trains._

I stopped brushing my teeth to look at my reflection. Even though my hair was a mess and I hadn't put on any make-up yet, I was the same as ever. Just lil' ol' Samantha from America who lived an average high school life. She was completely clueless as to what had happened when she was still home...

"Nope, c'mon Sam. You're a new girl. You can't go back to that anymore!" I said to myself, "Not gonna happen."

After finishing up I headed into the kitchen to find some breakfast. I thanked God for the leftover omelet surprise grandma made for me. She could make anything her lil' heart desired, especially liver stew, and it'd taste like a sliver of heaven. How I wish she were here right now...

It was a shame that I had to rush through breakfast just to get to school. By the time I was heading out the door I only had nine minutes before homeroom started. And I still had to meet one of my teachers.

I made it with the last swarm of people walking in while there was a minute or so left. To my amazement I found an empty cubby for my shoes right by the door. Everything was a piece of cake, but then came my worst nightmare: directory signs. Speaking Japanese was fine for me since my parents taught me over the years, but I could barely translate Kanji to save my life. While I stared at the sign on the wall there were other people eyeing me like I was a three-headed animal. _Take a picture, it'll last longer, _I snapped at them in my mind.

" 'Sumi masen' _(I'm sorry-formal)_, but are you lost?"

Standing next to me was a girl with long locks of light blue and teal eyes peering up at me through blue-rimmed glasses. She stood straight and stiff like a porcelain doll, waiting for my response, but I was at a loss for words.

" 'Ano', '_are you lost? Are you a new student'_?" she asked in flawless English.

"Oh, um..'hai'. I'm a new student, " I answered back in Japanese.

"You're a transfer student, I assume?'

"Ah, yeah. I stick out like a sore thumb, don't I?"

She smiled kindly at me then showed me to the teacher's office. I happened to catch a very prestigious air about her as she led me down the hall. The way she carried herself seemed to put off that she was an aristocrat of some sort. As we passed some other students, they walked along the opposite wall. The girls either whispered or just stared as the boys looked in different directions. To me it was like she was famous, or just avoided for some reason. I turned back to the girl, but she pretended not to notice.

My teacher, this "Ms. Ama", had already left when I got to her office. There was only a minute left for me to make it on time, so I had to run. Good thing I was fast on my feet.

"Oh," I said, "I never got your name."

"My name is Michiko...Michiko Ryuko," she told me.

"That's such a pretty name. I'm Samantha Mueller. Thanks for helpin' me to the teacher's office."

"Not at all. I hope your first day turns out well."

I grinned quickly before running out the door. Whatever groups of students coming in stared in bewilderment as I dashed down the hall. Two boys were carrying a large board as I was closing in on the stairs. My instincts naturally kicked in at that point. The next moment I found myself pushing off the ground with my hands and flipping over them in the air. The knees were a bit weaker than I imagined when I tumbled on the landing. I jumped up and kept going as I heard one yelling at me too fast for me to comprehend.

"Score one for Team America, bud!" I countered back.

With no time to lose I climbed the stairs. There were other voices coming from above which I assumed were my teacher's and someone else's. I shouted at the top of my lungs, " 'Mattede!' "

When I finally got to the top stair I found two spooked women. One was young with a brown, bobbed haircut, and the other was my age wearing her dark blue hair in a side ponytail. As I was trying to catch my breath, I asked, "Are..you..Ama-sensei?"

"U-uh, yes...I am. A-are you another stu-student?" the lady on the right replied.

" 'Hai' !" I stood up to face Ama-sensei and introduced myself.

Ms. Ama smiled and told me about her being eager to meet an American transfer student. She relaxed a little as she talked with me, but the other girl next to her seemed apprehensive. From the corner of my eye I could see her bashfully looking at me and then down at herself. I immediately thought, _Oh my God! She is so adorable! If you put some fake cat ears on her she'd be so cute! And she's real short...just adorable!_

Our teacher then took us down the hall towards the classroom. It was quiet between the three of us, almost as though we were being led down the Green Mile. I turned to my classmate to try to bring up a conversation, and boy, was she petrified. She was growing pale as we kept going and she tried taking a few breaths quietly so our teacher wouldn't notice. The last time I could recall someone being this anxious was when my Bio partner in 9th grade had to cut open a pig fetus. That day ended with her being held in the nurse's office after she fainted. Our teacher probably saw that coming...and he gave us a B+ for the effort...

But this girl before me was obviously so nervous for her first day. I felt that I had to say something or else she'd pass out. The only thing I could think of was to ask for her name.

"Misuzu-san, isn't it?"

We were left outside after Ama-sensei left to do roll call. She looked up at me, taking another deep breath, and mumbled, "Um..yes?"

I couldn't help but smile at her. She was just like a kitten. When Ms. Ama told me her name I almost slipped up and said, "Aww..."

"I'm Samantha. You can call me Sam if you'd like.

"So you're a new student too? Where're you from?"

"Uh...Wakayama..."

Little Misuzu started to settle down after I got her to talk. On a whim I continued on about the town and some of the other things I got to know after my two months of being here. Heck, I even mentioned a manga I randomly found in my dad's old box in the attic (which then led me to more manga searching at the local store). She seemed happy to talk about those small kind of things so I tried my best to keep her occupied.

But then our names were called from the classroom. She lowered her head as she entered first, myself after her. I thought it was necessary to shut the door behind me so I turned around and reached for the knob. But there was no knob.

"Um..Ms. Samantha, is there something outside?"

"Uh.."

I flipped back to her and said, "I can't find the door knob..."

"Eh?!"

The classroom was brimming with whispers as they stared at me. I turned back to the door saying, "It's weird that-oh..."

Sliding doors+Japanese school=not in America. That equation didn't add up until I pulled the door out and shut it properly. My face was bright red when I turned to my teacher and tried to apologize.

"I'm so sorry, " I babbled as I bowed in apology, "I'm used to western-style doors that I forgot it was different at school here!"

Everyone was laughing at me by this point. Only Ms. Ama and Misuzu were the ones trying to comprehend my blunder. Ms. Ama sighed once she realized that there was nothing to worry about. My teacher continued on with the introductions as mine had-unofficially-been established. She calmed the class and turned to Misuzu to introduce herself. Misuzu slightly nodded in response, but kept her head down. As she gathered the courage to speak she faced the class with an empty expression. But her eyes wandered to the corner of the classroom. I followed her gaze and found a boy with dark indigo hair and blue eyes staring carelessly out the window. _Does she know him, somehow?_

"Ms. Misuzu?"

"I..I'm..Misuzu Kasumi. it is nice to meet you, " she squeaked in her little voice.

After that I was called on to give my name. Not that "newbie", "fresh meat", or "typical American" were perfect enough to call me I did what Misuzu had done.

"I am Samantha Mueller. It is nice to meet you all. I hope we can all get along this year!"

Then came our seating arrangement. It was pretty clear where we would be sitting since there were only two empty desks sitting in the far back right across from one another. Naturally I took the one that was closest to Window Boy and his companion just for the sake of it. Misuzu quickly followed after me, taking her place on my right. Once that moment of awkwardness was over with Ms. Ama went on with our lessons.

The day unexpectedly went by like a second. Next thing I know there was a bell and everyone's dispersing to get lunch. I had already packed mine in a rush which consisted of only a plastic boxed-salad and a juice box. Not my regular go-to meal, but I felt like I needed some vegetables for once. Misuzu was still packing away her things when I came up and asked if she wanted to eat on the roof.

"Th-the roof?"

"Yeah. I've always wanted to do that like in the anime."

"O-oh.."

She looked down, still trying to put away her things.

"Hm? Haven't you been able to do that before?'

"I...I don't think I have."

I literally gasped at her. All these people have been up there to eat at least once, haven't they? It's like how back in America we'd be able to sit outside for lunch during the spring. That was an initiation in a sort of twisted way. And you aren't a Japanese school kid until you've tried to eat on the roof.

"Then we're gonna fix that. C'mon!"

She picked up her 'bento' and followed me outside the classroom. I motioned for her to get closer so she could follow, but she was somewhat hesitant. I'd turn back and find her about a foot or two away up until we were already at the foot of the stairs. Just as we were about to climb the staircase I noticed myself getting antsy. I was about to hop up and down like a kid for crying out loud!

When Misuzu finally got close enough I reached my hand out to her.

"Let's go!" I encouraged her, "It's supposed to be beautiful weather out right now!"

"Uh..um..."

She put her little hand in mine and I looked at her with a big smile. We climbed up the last of the steps then I pushed the door open.

The bright sunlight burst at us as we stepped outside. Misuzu stayed closest to the door, barely even taking in the view. I took a deep breath in and spun around.

"Oh my God, look at the view!

"Isn't it wonderful, Misuzu-san?" I asked her.

She was just about to say something when a maroon-haired girl spoke up.

" 'Misuzu-san' ? As in 'Misuzu Kasumi'?"

"Gou-san?"

"Kou! You still don't remember?"

_Oh...this is a bit awkward..._I guessed that they knew each other from before, but it didn't add up if Misuzu was from a different town. Could she have been to Iwatobi as a kid?...

The other girl, Kou, sat down next to her friend and Misuzu. _This meant I'd have to squeeze myself in somewhere..._

"Mueller-san, right? You are from America?"

"Um..yeah." _Or maybe not..._

I took a seat next to Misuzu feeling as though I was about to be persecuted as a new student. It was more concerning than frightening for me, but it didn't turn out that way. Kou asked me about America. They were really small things such as the Statue of Liberty or the recent movie I've seen. I answered them on a whim which I shouldn't-didn't want to answer. My memories of home only brought up the pain...

I did my best to keep from choking on my answers as Kou became giddy with excitement (especially about her questions concerning Michael Phelps...that was beyond me, though).

"The newest movie that came out that I've seen was The Host, but I didn't get to see it right away. You see, I-ouch!"

Someone stomped right onto my hand as I was reaching for my lunch. There was a sharp pain crawling up my arm as I took a deep breath through clenched teeth. The person bent down and was in the middle of asking me something when I turned my head. We both stared into each other's eyes whoever knows how long. His...his eyes were a brilliant green I'd never seen before. They were so amazing..

_'I know you'll hate me for this...but Jess-'_

Brandon's eyes...

I quickly looked away to avoid that bitter memory. My attention snapped back to my hand sitting on top of a sopping mess.

"I'm fine, really, " I tried to reassure him, "however..."

He took a handkerchief out from his pocket and held it out to me.

"Oh, I-I..."

"Here. It's alright. You can take it."

Even his voice was mesmerizing. He wasn't like any of the guys I've met, and American good guys were hard to come by nowadays...

I bit my lip as I took the handkerchief from him and wiped my hand clean. When I stood up to throw away my "lunch" he followed after me.

"Great..." I sighed as I watched my food go.

"I-I'm really sorry about this. Please, let me make it up to you."

"Oh no! I can't-I wouldn't want to-"

"I insist."

I pursed my lips as he gave me a small encouraging smile. This guy was harmless but that was the problem. I didn't want to take advantage of the poor guy even when he kept insisting. And everyone was still watching too...

"A-Alright.."

Both of us went down the stairs with him in the lead. I hadn't seen the cafe stand yet and apparently everyone here buys lunch. But there were some others I saw that packed-

"Ah, M-Mueller-san, was it?" he said.

"Hm? O-oh, yes."

"So you're an American transfer student?"

"Yeah," I confessed, "guess my cover's blown, huh?"

He chuckled and then replied, "America is a very big country, and yet you came to a small town. Are you here with family?"

"Yes. My grandmother, in fact,. She and I live in town close-by. It's a bit noisy, though."

"Oh? How so?"

"There are construction workers two houses down and across from mine who are tearing apart this one building. They're taking their sweet time with it too."

"Hmm..by any chance, do you know what the building is called?"

"Agh, I don't know. I'm still trying to figure out my Kanji. But I do remember that one side has a massive painting of a child swimming. It's a bit creepy when you look at it."

He looked down for a moment as though he were lost in thought. I stopped next to him and asked if he was feeling alright. To me he seemed fit as a fiddle, but something told me there was more to it.

"Oh, no! I-I'm perfectly fine...We're almost to the cafe."

I followed him after that awkward scene around the corner to the cafe stand. He sat back quietly as I looked at all the breads and sandwiches they offered (no hamburgers or anything? Just sandwiches?), finally deciding to get a melon bread. I felt guilt wash over me as he handed the lunch lady the money, even more so when she eye balled us and muttered to herself about "flirtatious couples". Man, did he blush...

The walk back was mostly silent. I wanted to bring up something to get him talking, but I barely knew the guy. What was it that nice guys talked about? Sports? Books? Grades?!

"Umm..I guess this is your stop."

I turned to him when he suddenly broke my train of thought. We were already back on the roof beside my circle of friends.

"Oh..yeah. A-And thank you again..for buying for me..."

"N-no problem. Nice to meet you,..by the way.."

"You too. I'm Samantha. Or, here I would call myself 'Mueller', wouldn't I?"

"Yes," he chuckled. Then he gave me his name. "I'm Tachibana Makoto."

His smile was unexpected. I stopped to look at him as he lit up like a candle with the bright smile. It was always cute when a shy guy opened up like that.

"I'll see you in class, then."

"Hu-oh, yes. See you then!"

He went back to his friends by the ledge, and I returned to mine. When I sat down another girl joined the party. Her hair was long and blonde, pulled into a ponytail, the end dip-dyed a sort of dark brown. She was most friendly to Kou and Kasumi. Probably another "old friend" of theirs.

I turned to Kou.

"Do you guys know him?"

"Know him? That's Tachibana Makoto-kun! Everyone knows his as the 'nicest boy on the planet'. And his shoulders..."

She sort of giggled to herself as she daydreamed about him. I didn't know what to do at that point with her smitten on his shoulders. Kasumi was confused as well.

"Ka-"

"So, are you a newbie too?" the blonde girl asked me.

"U-Uh yeah...am I that popular around here?"

"Puh-lease. This is just a small town. They're impressed with just about anybody. Like me."

"Where'd you move from?"

" _'Oh, y'know, the UK...then some other town here'_," she casually boasted in English.

" '_No way'_!" I exclaimed back.

She and I chatted away in English about our own lives before Iwatobi. I learned that Ella spent most of her time in England with her family, then her father transferred here on business. It was most amazing to me that she was half-English, half-Japanese, so both languages were in the bag for her.

Because Ella was a first-year student and Kasumi and I were second-years, she had to leave us at our classroom after the bell rang. Like before my day began its second half and it ended quickly. Everyone left in groups while Kasumi and I were one of the last few left after Makoto and his friend. Now that I was looking closely, I could see that he was remarkably tall. He could be a basketball player for all I knew...

"Uh..Samantha-san, are you riding the train home?"

I turned to Kasumi and answered, "No, I"m sorry. I live nearby in town. Are you farther out?"

She nodded with a disappointed look on her face. Her eyes were on Makoto's friend.

"Hey, I'll walk you to the train. I've wanted to see more of the town anyway."

She smiled at me like a little kid at the candy store. I had just melted inside when she did that. Kasumi was so cute!

Odd enough that Makoto and his friend were going to same way, Kasumi and I ended up right behind them 'til we got to the station. Kasumi and I waved goodbye, and she headed towards the train as the warning alarm to get on was near the end. Her hand was out when Makoto's friend took it and pulled her in. I bet she was blushing all the way home..

After that I walked home by myself. My next door neighbors greeted me as I got to the front door, which I quickly did back and went about my business. It was peaceful for the rest of the day until dark. I was just about to fall asleep when I heard commotion coming towards the house. There were only three people walking down the street, two of them running their mouths and the other quietly leading the way. They were heading for the old building while I watched them from the window, probably gonna smoke or mess around in there. _Great. I'm not gonna get enough sleep tonight..._

I put on some different clothes and grabbed a flashlight outside, I turned to follow the annoying no-do-gooders. I walked up to the old building where no one was outside. Of course, everyone knew that you'd want to do your dirty business inside where others wouldn't see, so I started with the front doors. There was a registration desk in the main hall with dirt and mold growing in every corner. Looking at it just sent chills up my spine.

In a close-by hallway came a few echoes of what sounded like people shouting and kicking cans at the wall. I gripped my flashlight as I walked down hoping that they weren't gangsters. Because in America they meant business if they had numbers, but Japan was different. This small town could easily be taken by at least five yakuza members. They were powerful if they had underground connections.

It took a while before I came across an indoor pool. I had no idea that this was a swim school until I saw the hoodlums dishing it out on one end of the pool. I watched secretly as two of them threw off their shirts. Wait-

"What?" I mumbled, nuzzling my face closer to the window behind them. Then they began unbuckling their pants as the other two tried to talk them out of it.

"Hot damn! What's this, a new Japanese fighting style?" I exclaimed.

The two going at it were dressed in swim suits, completely oblivious to my sudden outburst. But the sidekicks turned to me. I quickly ducked under the window before they could spot me._ My God, Sam can you make yourself any more weirder?_

It seemed as though things had calmed down when the red-head left and the other three came in. One of them I recognized as Makoto from earlier. Without thinking I spoke out and asked, "What're you doin' out here, Tachibana-kun?"

(If none of you have ever heard a young man scream before...well, I'm sorry that I couldn't record that moment for you). The way he screamed would've woken up a town. I jumped out of my skin when he did that, but when he turned around I exclaimed in my native tongue, " _'Good Lord almighty! You were about to give me a heart attack'_!"

"Ah, Mueller-san!"

"Yes..and what are you all doing here?"

"We could ask the same as you, Samantha-chan!" his shorter friend piped in.

"Nagisa.." Makoto mumbled.

" '-chan?' Uh..you guys aren't...yakuza trying to sneak around, are you?" I quipped.

"Yakuza?!" the two repeated.

"So that's a 'no'?"

"No-no! We're not yakuza...uh, do you want to come with us? We'll explain everything on the way," Makoto replied.

"I will...I'd just hurry if I were you."

"What for?"

"I'll tell you when we get out of here."

I grabbed Makoto's arm and led the way out. By now it was more than ten minutes since I had left the house. In the end, we were left with a warning at school not to trespass on private property. I tried defending myself to the teacher in charge, but he just wrote me off like I was weaseling my way out of the situation. So now grandma would get a letter soon of how my first day went.

Makoto and his other friends came up to me at lunch and tried to apologize for getting me into trouble, but at this point I wasn't as forgiving as I usually was.

"What were you all doing there at night? I should at least know that."

Makoto turned to me with a charming apologetic look.

"You see, it was about that particular building."

They walked me to the roof as Makoto explained the details. According to him, they were all a part of the old swim school when they were kids. There was a trophy they buried as a time capsule that they wanted to save, but their friend Rin showed up and challenged Haru (that dadgone silent type) to some kind of swimming match (I dunno-something that these Iwatobi boys do here). That was pretty much where I came in and tried to chase them away but to no avail.

Of course, it sounded like a farce to me.

"Then why did you have to break into the actual building when your trophy was in the courtyard?"

"We'd have to go through the back door to reach it. Though it would have been more convenient if we could have gotten in a different way."

I laughed and said, "Yeah, if only. But what was your other friend there for? Was it the trophy?"

The boys paused to look at each other. Nagisa then told me, "Rin-chan was a part of the swim club, too. But last night...he was different.."

"Oh.."

After that the conversation dropped. I didn't know if I hit a vein with these three or not so I wanted to change the topic before it just became awkward.

I turned to Makoto and said, "Um, Tachibana-kun? I'm sorry for earlier when I spooked you."

"O-oh, uh-"

" 'Neh', Makoto-chan? Bet you're still gonna be scared of the dark after last night," teased Nagisa.

"Oi, Nagisa!"

Nagisa cackled and told me, "You should've seen him last night. He hid behind Haru nearly the whole time!"

"Is that right?" I replied.

I gave Makoto a sympathetic smile.

"If it makes any difference, I don't like horror movies in particular."

He smiled back half-relieved and half-embarrassed. If I didn't know any better, I could've sworn that he was blushing. The timid "hand-behind-the-head" gesture he made almost seemed surreal compared to the many times anyone has seen it in Japanese drama, but he made it look good. What really caught my breath was his eyes. Right as he opened them I thought to myself, _Dear God, how beautiful a work You've done on this boy's eyes. Thank you.._They were such gentle eyes for him which was an incredibly perfect match. And the green-

"Is there something wrong, Mueller-san?" Makoto asked.

"Oh, excuse me. I'm not one to doze off like that."

Before we could finish the bell rang and Kasumi scooted in between us to walk back to class with me. None of us were able to talk to each other until the end of class came. Kasumi jumped at the chance for me to take her to the train station. I agreed, of course, but I had no idea why she was so antsy about it.

Just like before she and I were behind Makoto and Haru on the road to the station. Again I caught her staring at Haru, bashfully looking up and away as though she were confirming something. I automatically assumed that she had a small crush on him, so I whispered to her, "Y'know, a conversation doesn't start until you speak up."

"Eh?!"

She turned to me and asked, "W-What do you mean? That I say something to-"

"Well, only if you can. And I believe that's perfectly simple for you."

"I-talking to...Nanase-kun.."

"Uh-huh."

Kasumi immediately ducked her head down. I patted her back and replied, "No need to be embarrassed. It's simple. Here, lemme show you."

I walked up to Makoto with a tight grip on Kasumi's wrist.

"Hey, Tachibana-kun! Nanase-kun!"

"Oh, Mueller-san, hello! Are you taking the train as well?"

"Me? No, I'm just taking my friend Misuzu-chan. She's the one who catches the train."

I eased her closer to the group so she could speak. She kept close to me for the remainder of the walk as Makoto took over the rest. Makoto, being the nice one, asked her about her moving here and if she liked the town so far. She would've given him clear answers if Haru hadn't looked at her from the corner of his eye. Every time his attention was on her she started getting nervous. From my view it looked like he was glaring at her and she started clamming up because of it. I patted her back again to help her yet she had already made up her mind to shut down. So much for that...

She and Haru got onto the train as Makoto stopped to talk to me. He asked me, "Is your friend Misuzu-chan feeling alright?"

"Yeah, but she's a bit shy. I'm guessing she was scared when..uh, Haru was listening."

"Oh. I guess I can understand then. Haruka was always quiet when we were younger."

"You two were really close back then, huh?"

"Heh, yeah."

"Then I guess it's up to us to help our friends open up more, 'neh' ?"

He looked surprised to hear me say that as though I took the words right out of his mouth. I only grinned back at him like it was meant to be taken lightly, but his smile in return said something different. If only the warning chime hadn't gone off for him to leave. I would've been able to talk to him a little longer, but instead we waved goodbye and parted our ways. As I walked home, I thought about all the smiles he'd given me in a single day. I wondered what tomorrow will bring...

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_A/N: __*8/4/15 Edit*_


	2. Our New Club

_A/N: Hey, readers. I just came back from an unexpected hiatus and now I have a bit more free time to work on writing the five stories on the Iwatobi series. I'm gonna try to sum everything up so we can get to the good stuff._

_Samantha and Makoto: Honestly, I'm a Makoto girl. That guy is just too dang sexy to let go of after the second season ended. He is a really friendly guy with a sexy smile and sexy hair and-dangit, I'mma steal him from Samantha if I keep going. That sexy bastard is infecting my brain! _

_Really, he is a loving guy. He's a great best friend. And that's what I need from him to give to Samantha after she experienced a lot back in her home country of America before moving to Japan. She's a great friend like him, but I feel that she isn't going to open up as much as she used to in America because one:) she has little faith or trust than she used to in people and two:) There's a lot on her plate to adapt to a new society than the one she was used to since she was a kid. She keeps thinking positive, but I have a feeling that Makoto is going to be needed when she'll hit a curb (not an actual one, but a metaphorical one...). As for them together, I'm going to need to take baby steps. I'm working my way there! Please bear with me while I do. _

_As for notes, I'll try to come in and out between chapters for heads up or anything in the story or leave a comment about translations. I'm trying to comb through all the chapters I've posted in the stories to make sure I haven't misspelled something or mis-typed anything. If there's any concern about the Japanese translations or how the story is, feel free to drop by and give me feedback. I promise not to bite. _

_Thanks, and I hope to you soon in the next chapter! _

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Chapter Two:

My next day began with the sakura trees blowing petals in my front yard, the sun shining, and not so warm-of-weather that I expected in the beginning of April. I guess I expected a little too much considering the Tennessee weather I was accompanied to for so long. I wished that I could take this long of a walk with my grandma, get to talk, just see a familiar smile after this sudden change of pace for me, but her condition hadn't stabilized since I came here. One of these days, maybe even this week, I could set forward to visit her...

When I was walking up the street and close to the school, I saw lil' Misuzu starin' at her feet slowly carrying her to the front gate. I thought I'd say 'hi' so I called out to her as I quickly crossed the road. She looked up at me with a sad, somewhat tired expression, and I asked her if something was wrong. I never expected an answer like, "Compared to you I'm just pitiful is all," coming.

"Huh? 'Pitiful'? Did someone make fun of you?"

Or worse..what if she took the train and-

"D-Did someone touch you on the train?"

"Eh?!"

She nervously looked around at the street. That must've meant that he was still around!

"Oh! C'mon, Misuzu-san! Let's talk somewhere private!"

I took her by the hand and fled to the gates. The predator couldn't touch her on school property where there were other people around, and I felt that it was safer to hide behind a sakura tree. This time I asked her again, but Ella came up to us saying," Yo! Wazz-up!"

"Misuzu-san may have been touched on the train!"

"Wait, like, bump 'touched' or illegally 'touched'?"

"Illegally."

She snapped back to Misuzu.

"Misuzu-chan! Who touched you?!"

"N-"

"It's okay, hon'," I told her, "You can tell us."

Rule number one on the Comforting Friend's List: Don't make the other person feel pressured in any way, otherwise, they will shut down. It's kind of like the same thing when you're cohersin' a rabbit out of its hole. You don't pressure it, and try to not make a sound as you sneak up to it. So, I just needed to-Wait, do these two situations even use the same principles?

"We'll have to call the police, y'know."

"Oh, phooey! If this pervert is out there now then we'll hafta' get 'em ourselves!"

"Nah, who knows who this person is. If it were some wimp, then I say 'hell, yeah let's get 'em'!

"What if they have a weapon on 'em?"

"You're talkin' to a girl who's lived in the US! Where I'm from I've seen my daddy use different guns while deer huntin' so many times that I'd know how to take apart that gun in less than ten seconds!"

" 'Ano' _(Umm)_!"

Ella and I turned to Misuzu who became red-faced as she realized more than just us had heard her from inside the school building. I was just shocked that she could raise her voice like that.

"No one touched me. I never even got onto the train this morning...I'm sorry if there was some sort of misunderstanding.."

"Oh, thank the Lord!" I sighed, " You had me worried!"

"Misuzu-chan, don't scare us like that!"

The bell interrupted us while we stood frozen realizing that all of us were going to be late. Ella immediately made a bee line for the front doors shouting something back to us. I reacted a bit too irrationally by grabbing Misuzu's hand and running after Ella. We threw off our shoes at the entrance and forgot to put on our indoor ones as we ran down the hallway. Both of us carried our shoes and just ran with our feet in our socks, which may not have been the best solution while running up the stairs. We were so close-then Misuzu tripped over her own foot and laid out face flat. The pressure was on for us to get to class in less than a minute and now we had a set back. There was no other choice.

"Sorry, kitten," I mumbled.

I picked her up and tossed her over my shoulders. She wasn't any heavier than a bale of hay I used to carry to the barns back home.

"Hold on, I'mma get us there."

" 'M-M-M-Ma-Ma-Mate' _(W-W-Wait-)_-"

"I ain't quittin' on ya!"

And away I went. I leapt up the stairs two at a time running as fast as I could towards the classroom.

In order to sneak in the best way I had to use the door to the back of the class. It was about time that I had to use my gymnastics from Junior High to sneak in. So I took one large breath and opened the door, ready for this new challenge.

My mind zipped to the first step: getting Misuzu to her seat. I raced into the class, sliding on my knees and pulled out her chair. She hopped onto the chair. Then I somersaulted to my seat. Right on time the teacher called out Misuzu's name; she weakly responded. She looked over at me with a shocked expression. All I could do besides laugh at our situation on the inside was smile and think, _Hey, if we got away with it, then that's all that counts._

Lunchtime came pretty quickly after that. It was a quiet day outside and the sunlight set the mood perfectly as the girls and I sat together to eat. Everyone was happily chatting away with each other, but Kou was depressingly looking down at her 'keitai'.

So I asked her, "So, what's the 4-1-1 from last night, Matsuoka-san?"

Hopefully it wasn't anything upsetting to her. I just went in without thinking about it. _Good Lord, Sam. Can't you think before actin'? _I thought.

"Eh? Wh-What do you you mean?"

Well, by her response it was less of a personal situation than I'd imagined. At least she was able to tell me what was on her mind.

"Oh, c'mon now, I can tell something is bugging you by that look on your face. Did something happen?"

"I...I sent a text to my brother to see if he had met with his friends Hazuki-kun, Tachibana-kun and Nanase-kun at the old swim school. But he hasn't replied back..."

That reminded me of that one guy who walked away from them at that old pool. But, wait, wasn't it more red, or magenta hair? Maybe..

"Hold on! You mean to tell me that your brother was the red-head from the other night?"

"What? You've seen 'Oniisan'?"

"Ah, well...yeah.."

I explained to everyone what happened the other night when I chased after the boys into the old swim school. Some of them laughed as I told them about the boys stripping and me shouting for no reason. But suddenly Kou asked me if they got to swim. That was new for me, askin' if they swam when there were better questions to ask than that.

"H-Huh? Uh-no. There wasn't any water in the pool so they left. That's when I came into the scene. And dadgum, did all of us get into trouble!"

"What?" exclaimed Misuzu, "You too, Mueller-san?!"

"Sure did! And I was the one who tried shooin' them off!"

When I saw the look on her face I changed gears. I wouldn't have expected her to be disappointed. I mean, back home many of the people I knew bragged about not gettin' caught from something (more of thrill seekers than hard-core crime junkies, mind you) or even gettin' into trouble. Even Bran-

No, I'm in Japan._ I'm in Japan_...

I didn't know what was wrong with me for the rest of the day as I sat back in class. I was looking at the board, taking notes and listening to the teacher, yet i wasn't. The classroom had changed with the glare of the sunlight in my eye, and I could've sworn that I was back in America with Jess sitting besides me, Brandon in the back with his friends, and our quirky English teacher Mr. Reed up front. Everyone laughed as he tripped over his rug under his podium and my friend whispered something funny to me about our teacher. Then it'd all disappeared like an unimportant dream...

When I finally got back to the teacher's lecture, I stared at the notes and I tried to catch whatever I'd missed. At this point I could find more interest in what I'd make for dinner tonight than taking notes.

Thankfully the bell rang and everyone left. I stood up and stretched my sore arms out. Misuzu sat mesmerized like she were in a daydream with her cheeks lookin' a bit flushed. She jumped when I called out her name.

"You feelin' alright, Misuzu-san?"

"U-Uh..yes. I'm just tired. Do you mind if I go on ahead?"

"Naw, you go on. I'm just gonna talk with Matsuoka-san before leaving."

"O-Okay."

Misuzu bustled out the door with our other classmates. I sighed to myself as I thought about dinner tonight and eating alone once again. All I wanted was to go back home and forget that I had even thought about the past. It just put me in a puckered out mood.

In any case, I couldn't miss out on meeting up with Kou. It sounded important and Ella had already found and dragged me down the hallway to go meet Kou. I put on the best face I could manage for her so that I could at least pretend I was okay.

We caught up to our friend who was talking to Tachibana and Hazuki by the end of the hallway. I picked up on some of the conversation they had, only translating "water", "we", and "fun". Dunno what they were going on about, but it seemed that Ella heard them as well. She stepped up to Hazuki and demanded, "What's this about a club?"

Man, was she up in arms. The way she was looking at Hazuki was like she was challenging him to a duel. He turned to her, her glare not even phasing him, and said, "Ah! Takemono-chan!"

"E-Takemono '-chan'?"

" 'Gomen', I don't know you first name."

Then I watched her look at Hazuki. She opened her mouth to jump his case, but she stopped. The glare in her eye faded, and she dumb-foundedly stared at him. To me, Hazuki was bashfully looking to the side and scratched his cheek. I could've sworn there was color in her cheeks, but she quickly shook her head, he looked at her, she turned and went, "Hmph!"

_Oh, she's what you call a 'tsundere'! So, that means that she acts tough yet bashful around her crush. So then...she thinks he's cute? She likes him?...Hmm..._

"Neh, Samantha-chan. We wanted to get some people together to form a swim club."

"You mean you guys don't have one now?"

I looked at the rest of the group. Kou turned to me and answered, "I think they used to have one, but most of the seniors graduated and there weren't enough members to keep it going. So then they shut it down for a few years..."

"Oh."

" 'Mah-neh', would you join it if we start one, Samantha-chan? It'd be really fun, and we'd-"

"Sounds great to me. I'll definitely join."

" 'Ya-ta'!"

Hazuki threw his fist up in the air, Tachibana and Kou smiling with him. I looked at Ella thinking that she'd say she'd join too, but she looked at her shoes and blushed as Hazuki asked, "What about you, Takemono-chan?"

She frowned, her lips pursed and she avoided looking directly at Hazuki. Everyone stood waiting for her to respond but she wouldn't budge.

I then told Hazuki and the others, "Y'know what, we both have to get home before the hour's up. Do you mind if we pick this back up tomorrow?"

"E-i. We'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Alright-y. Take care, guys!"

"Bye-bye!" Kou said as she waved to us.

I walked with Ella down the hall and tried to snap her out of her thoughts . She kept frowning to herself and uncurling then curling her fists. It was more concerning than that when we got to the front door and she started banging her head on her locker door.

"Uh, Ella, you okay there?"

"I-agh,...I'm fine. I just hate that guy," she said, quietly mumbling to herself at that last part.

"You..wanna talk about it?"

"Yes-no-I-AGH!"

She slammed the shoe locker door and stuffed her feet into her outdoor shoes. I jumped back. _Was she really ticked off by Hazuki? What did he do to her that made her that upset?_

"Let's go," she muttered to me.

I quietly followed behind her as we left school grounds and walked down the sidewalk. She grumbled to herself for the whole fifteen minutes we had to walk with each other, and I didn't have a clue of what to say to her. I thought of just starting off with how her week had been going or if she knew any funny TV shows. But there just wasn't a chance to talk to her. As she was off in her own world, she stomped her feet and sped up another few feet in front of me.

_That's it-_

"Ella-chan!"

I grabbed her bag strap and said, "You shouldn't stress yourself this much. If something's botherin' you, you can tell me about it."

She finally gave in and sighed.

"Hazuki ticks me off."

"Okay..." I replied, "that's a start."

I let go of her and stood tall. She scoffed to herself, probably thinking that talking about her issue was stupid, but we were alone on this corner and we had all the time in the world. I tried smiling to reassure her that it was okay for her to tell me what she could.

"Okay, that's an understatement. I hate him..but at the same time he's-he's-y'know! How do you say it?"

" 'Kawaii' _(Cute)_?"

"Sure, whatever," she scoffed. "So, whenever I see him I feel ticked off and I want to shout at him, but I also fell girly and giddy when he looks...ugh. Does that even make any sense?"

"Yeah, I understand. Do you want me to tell you what I think?"

She leaned her weight over to her left foot and closed her mouth.

"Well, I can say that you're feelin' somethin' complicated. You get goofy around him yet angry, and you want to hide it so you try to ignore him and pass him off...right?

"Technically, that's considered a crush. But so soon into the year...I say don't worry. Take your time to get to know him and then you decide how you feel. Pursue him if you want, or don't bother with him. It's up to you."

"...Oh-my-God! 'Like him'?! Are you-"

I knew she wanted to gag at what I had said, but what surprised me was when she stopped to think about it. At the same time I heard someone call out my name from behind. To my surprise I found Tachibana running towards me.

_Whew, look at that! A hunk like that running for you? Didn't know you were that lucky lil'-_

_Hey, quit thinkin' weird things, Sam!_

_You thought it first!_

_Wait a minute! Am I havin' this conversation with myself right now?_

"Ah, Tachibana-kun!" I said so I could quickly forget my awkward moment in my head.

Tachibana stopped in front of me with his hand opening up to me. In his palm was a lime green handkerchief that had the same initials as mine. And it looked like grandma's print too. _Hold the phone!_

"You dropped this after you left. I'm glad I was able to catch up to you."

"Goodness! I'm sorry you had to do that for me!"

I quickly bowed to him as an apology (customary here, anyways) and reached out to take it from his hand. But as I had just touched it replied, "Ei, don't be sorry. I'm not.."

_Did I just hear that right?_

I had back the handkerchief, but I almost dropped it as I looked up at him and blushed. Then came the disappointment.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I hope I didn't say anything-uh-well-I-"

He cleared his throat and excused himself from me. I waved goodbye to him, pretending to play it off.

"Can you feel the aw-kward tonight?" sung an off-key voice behind me.

I turned and countered, "Well it looks like someone has finally cheered up!"

"Ha! Talk about 'shy couple'. Can I say that you two are just so 'cu-ute' together?"

I chuckled to that, but I felt the sting of the past hit me hard.

"I don't think that's possible...not after.."

I bit my tongue, just for a moment, and then I told her, "Alright, I gotta get some food on the table. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Y-Yeah.."

She left in the opposite direction as I headed down one shortcut home. After Ella was gone I curled my fists and tried to think about something funny. Anything but that one day...

That night I stood in the kitchen cooking curry with my last clean pot. I got a call from the hospital earlier, and grandma's doctor had let me know that she would be able to come home within the week. So at least there was some good news for me. I needed that.

Well, it was getting better. The next day I came in ready to go and settled in my seat (on time, thankfully) and got through the morning. At lunch Hazuki waved around the club application form and tried explaining to Misuzu the plan to start up a new club. Ella had (apparently) talked to Hazuki and joined, but Misuzu had some difficulty deciding if she wanted to do the same. Both Ella and I knew that we couldn't force her, so I let her think it over until she had an answer.

And she really did take her time. The weekend came and went and yet there wasn't a response from her. But my good news finally came when my grandmother was back home on Sunday with fire in her spirit , though she put me through the usual guilt trip about not visiting her then a lecture from the letter she got from the school about me "allegedly breaking into private property". I was lucky that she believed me when I explained what really happened. We were able to talk to each other for the rest of the day and catch up on me and school.

Then the school week picked up after that and still nothing from Misuzu. We all missed her at lunch while everyone worked refurbishing the school pool (we had to agree to that when the school board finally approved). Though, Ms. Ama didn't do anything but "supervise" us from her sun chair underneath an umbrella.

As we were working around the fence one day I moved closer to Tachibana and asked, "So how did it turn out with the art club?'

"Eh? Ah, well..I didn't expect that they would do that."

I laughed to myself and put down my clippers.

"Yeah. They just sprung out of nowhere and tried to kidnap Nanase-kun. And then Hazuki-kun was on the floor trying to save him..."

I broke off so I could control my laughter. Tachibana smiled and started chuckling softly.

" 'Gomen' _(I'm sorry)_ , I just find it funny, but you probably disagree with me."

"No, I understand. It was startling at first, but now I see what you mean."

"Oi, you two!"

Hazuki stood tall in the unfilled pool with his finger pointed at us. Ella looked up at the same time, and then both of their voices ordered in unison, "Quit slacking and get to work!"

"Hey, don't steal my words from me!" snapped Ella.

"O-I didn't mean to!"

"Hmph!"

"Aww, Takemono-chan! Please don't be that way!"

Tachibana and I watched them argue with each other, and then we started laughing. I had no idea what came over me but I looked at Tachibana and instantly felt that everything was okay, that I was safe. For this once we could relax. That I could relax.

Thanks to everyone's help, Misuzu's (whom joined us not too soon after), and Kou's, we were able to finish the pool by the end of the week. It looked brand new with the pool filled and the sidewalk cleaned. We all celebrated with some cider and cheered, and everything seeming well.

Then that one water fanatic just couldn't contain himself any longer.

One moment I hear someone shout, then the next there's an embarrassed girl staring at a shirtless guy ripping his pants off. I whistled to myself thinking that he was a son of a gun, but I turned back to Misuzu while she was working herself up to a point. A creep then comes up, scares her into the pool, she's saved by Nanase and then laying unconscious in my arms.

"Oh, Lord, so help me. I.."

I had no idea what I could do at this point. One person was floatin' in the too-cold-of-a-pool, one conked out, a teacher with an injured elbow, and a pervert makin' a run for it.

_Go-what was-I-I-_

I was almost on the verge of shouting at the top of my lungs when I felt a hand pat my shoulder, and a voice said to me," Mueller-san, please take a deep breath."

Tachibana gave me an encouraging smile. And suddenly my mind was clear.

With a deep breath I turned to Hazuki and asked, "Hazuki-kun, can you take Ama-sensei to the nurse's?"

"Hai!"

"Tachibana-kun, can you fish out Dolphin Boy before he catches a cold? Then one of you take Misuzu up to the nurse's with you?"

"Ye-wait, Dolphin Boy?!"

"And girls?"

Both Kou and Ella looked at me with serious faces.

"There's a pervert on the loose with pictures of Misuzu's panties on his phone."

"Pervert?!"

"What do you wanna do, Samantha?"

"Let's go kill the lil' bastard!"

I handed Misuzu over to Tachibana and stoop up with the other two. Ella took the gateway path and Kou went through the locker rooms. We knew the guy would hurry towards the main gate to get out, so in case he tried throwing us off of his tracks we split up. Without a moment to lose I jumped onto the fence and climbed over to follow the path he came. I jumped into the bushes he hid in, fumbling to the side but caught myself at the edge of the small incline. His foot prints checkered the ground as if he was in a hurry to scramble up. But the prints were still there. He was about as dumb as a chicken trying to hide from fox in a chicken coop.

"I'mma getcha'!" I declared, "and you'll regret it!"

That guy made it the entire way around the school up to the entrance. I was able to make out a figure as it stumbled on its feet by the school yard. I had a few seconds to catch up. No way was he gonna get away when I was so close!

"Hey! Hold it right there!" I shouted.

He looked right at me and tried to get up. Just as he was back on his feet, Ella came out of nowhere screaming something. The guy was quick to react. For one second I saw him raise his hands out to defend himself and then Ella jumps on top of him. Both fell to the ground.

"Ella!"

I ran as fast as I could to her. When I got there I found the guy on top of her with his hands...on her chest...on her breasts?!

She shrieked at him, then clocked him right in the head. He fell over to the side like a ton of bricks.

"Ella, what did he-"

"He just groped me! Oh my God! He's so dead!"

I laughed and replied, "don't worry about that. He's out for good. You punched his lights out, Ella!"

I helped her up onto her feet while she was still making a fuss about the boy. We looked down at his unconscious body wondering what we were to do.

"What do we do with him now?"

"I dunno...we could throw him into the pool..or bury him six feet under."

"No-o!"

"No one would know.."

"One: you're creeping me out. Two: it's not the end of the world when he fondled your-"

"Yes it is! I can't get married now.."

I looked at her and said, "I didn't think you were someone to consider marriage after high school.."

"Well, no, but-"

She turned her head and murmured, "Shut up."

Rolling my eyes I bent down and grabbed his ankles.

"C'mon, let's take him to the nurse's office."

"I wouldn't even touch him with a four foot pole."

"Ella, seriously, we can't leave him here."

"Mueller-san!"

Kou ran towards us with two others at her side, Tachibana and Nanase. I felt relieved to have someone actually help me than just complain.

Tachibana and Nanase carried him for us as we walked back into the school building. Kou walked with Ella and I to catch up on what had happened. It was a good thing she came back to find us because I almost worried that she had gotten lost during the chase. She told us that she ended up taking a wrong turn, went through the building to find the school entrance, then found the two others trying to find us.

We entered the nurse's office with the nurse jumping back and forth between Misuzu and Ms. Ama. Hazuki wasn't helping much besides bugging the nurse, but he saw us and said, "Ah! 'Min-ea' _(Everyone)_! You're back!"

"Who could possib-oh! Another unconscious one? Set him on that corner bed."

The boy set him down gently as the nurse walked towards him and checked his forehead for fever. Then she asked us, "How's this one out?"

"Well, um, you see, " I explained, "he...ran into a wall."

"You don't have to lie. It's obvious that he was punched..."

"I-I'm sorry, ma'am.."

"He probably deserves it. I've seen him in here multiple times for the same reason."

"Why's that?"

"Girls have caught him stalking them and gave him a good smack in the face."

_Oh great, we've got a Grade A pervert on our hands? _I thought.

"And it's about time he wakes up. I can't wait to see what excuse he gives this time."

From her desk she grabbed her cup of water and threw it right in his face. Everyone but Ella and Nanase gasped when she did it.

The boy coughed and gagged when he woke up with a rough start. Ella and I folded our arms, and she asked, "What's your name?"

"Nn-who..?"

"Name. Now."

"U-uh..Minami Gou. Look, I'm really sor-"

"So, Minami, you think it's fun to take pictures of girls' panties and try to run away?"

"It's not like that. I-"

"Don't weasel your way out of this, Minami-san. I'd do what she says, "I warned him.

He closed his mouth.

"What were you doing by the pool?"

"I took pictures-"

"So you admit that you took pictures of her-!"

"No-no! I wasn't! I was..."

"You were what?!"

"I was trying to take pictures of..swimsuits.."

Ella and I looked at each other for a moment. Both of us were thinking, _What's the difference between taking pictures of underwear and swimsuits?_

"You better not be making fun of me, Minami. I'll put you out again!"

" 'Ch-Ch-Ch-Chotto matte'-I'm serious!"

"Really? 'Cuz you seem like you're hiding something?"

"Well, I mean, my friends put me up to it, but I only agreed to it because..uh...swimsuits...are..interesting..."

"...That's pretty bold of you to say that right now in your situation," I said after a series of imaginary crickets chirped.

"Call me crazy, but I just had to say it."

"Swimsuits or not you're still a creep who has nasty photos of my friend. And I want them deleted now," demanded Ella.

"No problem," he muttered, "I didn't see any swimsuits anyway..."

Ella stomped over to him and snatched his 'keitai' out of his hand. As she snapped at him about his other photos, Misuzu moaned in her sleep, mumbling something about water. I slowly sat down at the end of her bed and called out her name.

"N-no," she cooed in her sleep, "don't...'darega'...help...'dasukete'..'onigai'..please..."

"Misuzu-san..?"

All of a sudden she rose up in a panic like she dreamt a bad dream. Misuzu gasped for breath holding her head in her hands. It scared me to see her like that. I'd never seen her that panicked before.

" 'Daijoubu' ?" I asked.

"M-..Mueller-san? Where...Where are we?"

"We're in the nurse's office. You..passed out after you fell into the water, do you remember?"

"H-Hai..Oh! 'Gomen-nasai'!" I shouldn't have worried you like that!"

"No need to be sorry. Things like that can't be helped, y'know? Plus, you can lean on us when you need to. We're friends, right?"

"..Friends?"

"Well, duh," Ella cut in, "you and I already knew each other before coming here and Samantha's cool enough to join our group. Kou, you alright with us as friends?"

Kou smiled a bit nervously before answering, "Of course!"

"There, Misuzu-chan. Now call us 'Samantha and Ella'."

"W-What?"

"Oh, c'mon Ella," I replied, "wouldn't that be a bit too much for her in a day."

Ella shrugged at me.

"Then she'll do it when she wants to."

Misuzu fiddled with her fingers, her eyes on the sheets, and then squeaked, "Sama-ntha-chan...Ell-a-chan..."

I couldn't contain myself when I heard her say my name.

"Aww! Did you hear that, Ella?"

" 'Kawaii', neh?'

Then Hazuki zipped over to us and asked, "Then that means we're friends, too? Right? Right? And Mako-chan and Haru-chan as well?"

Tachibana told him, "Only if they're comfortable with it, Nagisa."

"Hmph!...I suppose you could be a friend.." Ella huffed.

"Then that officially makes us friends, Ella-chan!"

She furiously crossed her arms and turned her head away with her cheeks glowing red. I laughed at them and then asked Misuzu, "So, Misuzu-chan, if it's not any-"

"N-N-Na-Na-s-s-se-"

I glanced in the direction that she was looking and gasped. Everyone then turned.

"Nanase! How long have you been in your swim trunks?!"

"Some time now.."

"How can you be so calm saying that?!"

Thump!

"Aww, Nanase! You just made her faint again!"

"Wha-"

"You're indecent! Where're your clothes?"

"By the pool."

"Then go get 'em on!"

"Now?"

And so I snapped, "It's either you walk out of here or I'll send you flying towards the pool!"

"Ha-ha-ha! Haruka-chan flying...like a flying fish!"

" 'Saba'?"

"Just go get'cher clothes already!"


	3. Oh, Captain, m-Wait, What?

Chapter Three:

Well,...our first day as a team seemed...

Nope. I'm not going to lie to myself and say it was alright. It was chaotic.

After having to "consult" with our stalker in the nurse's office and carry my twice-fainted friend to her house, with little help from Ella, I was tuckered out. I'd never dealt with a colorful character like "Gou", the ginger boy who made a bold enough statement about loving female swimsuits to shut the trap on Angelina Jolie. I might have overreacted but it's hard to come by folks like that. So I let the poor soul go with a "slap on the wrist".

Ella wasn't happy with me about that, but then again she wasn't happy with anything not going her way. Especially when I had to drag her with me to take Kasumi home. She kept complaining about her wrists while carrying all of the bags on the way there.

Kasumi's mother was kind enough to let us stay with Kasumi until she woke up. She was about as tall as my grandmother and had dark-colored hair. I could've sworn it looked as deep blue as a raven's in the sunlight, but I didn't get a good look. Though she had a nice little smile. Like mother, like daughter.

"Didn't Kasumi have a change of clothes? The nurse could've at least given us a towel for her," grumbled Ella as I set Kasumi down on her bed.

"Well, we'll just have to leave it as is. It's a wonder she wasn't woken up to the cold breeze outside."

"She's passed out. I'm sure she wouldn't feel it."

Ella rolled her eyes at me before turning to Kasumi's desk. I sighed as I watched lil' Kasumi sleep, thinking that she'll catch a cold if she's left like that.

_And Ella's complaining won't make it better. She really didn't have any place to say something before like that._

I didn't see any other alternative other than to leave her be and wait in her room, so I stood by Ella and looked at Kasumi's room. It was neat and tidy with very little displayed other than text books and journals on her desk and a half-way open closet. Even her clothes were as adorable as her personality. Her room and everything she had was oozing cute and girly. I wondered if it were too girly to be true...

"Hey, you think Kasumi will mind if I get into this box?"

My mind switched back to Ella as she bent over and opened the lips of a cardboard box sitting by the chair. Inside were neatly stacked books.

"Ooo. Manga!"

She plucked one out of the box that had a girl with neon pink hair punching through a cement wall on the cover. Ella read aloud the title, "Aino-chan! Let's go!". Apparently it was an oldie from a couple years back.

In spite of leaving alone other people's personal belongings my curiosity took over and made me take a book. Like Ella I opened to the first page and read, but I sat against the wall instead of on my stomach on the rolling chair. I warned her, and only got a scoff in response.

The art in the book was great, real eye candy. One problem: I couldn't translate the first kanji I saw. I was stuck on that dang thing for twenty minutes.

_Man, I shoulda' paid more attention to Daddy when he gave me those language lessons..._, I thought.

Over the sound of my brain frying in my skull I heard something stir on the left. Kasumi sat up looking confused.

"Oh, hey, you're up. We were wondering about you," I said.

Ella noticed her after me. "Look who decided to join us!"

Anyone would assume that a friend would ask what happened or how their friends took them home...I don't think Kasumi was one of those people.

A noise sounding like a gasp crossed over to an inhale to a hairball came out of her small mouth. I'd'a thought that she was possessed by the devil if her eyes were rolled back. But she looked sick.

"Hey, you're lookin' a little pale there, Kasumi-chan," I tried saying with a friendly chuckle. "You still woozy?"

"U-U-U-U-"

"Maybe she didn't want us to read her books from that box?" Ella offered.

That was when I noticed that she was looking at the box.

"Oh, I'm sorry. We'll put 'em back if you don't want us to read 'em."

"Yeah, we didn't know that you'd freak out about i-agh!"

Before I could react, Ella tried leaning into the box on her stomach but fell right over.

"Oo-gh...Bollocks...That's gonna hurt in the morning..." she grunted.

"Are...are you okay, Takemono-chan?" squeaked Kasumi.

"I'll be fine..."

"I thought I told ya' not to do that the first time," I told Ella.

"_Oh, bug off, you wanker_," she huffed.

I didn't care if she cursed at me in her funky British terms, but it did sounded funny coming out of her mouth. I laughed right back at her and tried skipping over the fricking kanji I couldn't read.

"Umm," Kasumi tried to say as she pinched her nose, "You're...free to read...the books..I'm..not upset..."

"You're not?" I asked. "Okay, then. I'll keep readin' 'cuz this is getting interesting."

"Yeah, this is pretty cool what you got here..I guess."

Kasumi sat next to me and said, "You don't think it's...weird?"

"Not really, no. My daddy has a whole bunch of these in the attic at my grandmother's, so it doesn't really faze me. Why?"

"Not a lot...of people think...it's okay."

"Having manga?" interrupted Ella. "What's so bad about reading comi-hey, what the hell is this?"

She pulled out an old notebook worn-out, Sharpied in black, and drawn-over with gruesome letters and a pentagram. If my grandma were to have seen that-oh, gosh, would she birth a cow and a calf!

But Ella didn't stop there.

" 'Socery Guide to the Perverse and Divine'. 'Written by Osana Magische Flugel'..."

"Did you just say something in German?" I scoffed.

Kasumi hunched over on her stomach and bowed, saying in an embarrassed, scared, high-pitched voice I could barely understand, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to see that!"

"You mean you wrote this?" Ella inquired.

Kasumi rubbed her head into the carpet as a nod.

"It's too embarrassing..."

"Oh..my gosh..so basically, you were a 'chuuni' in junior high?" said Ella.

"What's a 'chuuni'?" I couldn't help to ask.

"It's like this...it's kind of like...ugh-okay. So, really, it means 'eighth-grade syndrome'. Some eighth graders either act stuck up and think they know better than others, or...some of them believe that they have supernatural powers."

"Oh..."

_So I guess it was too good to be true, her being really girly. But it's not like I wouldn't have expected this. And it's not right to judge her._

"Kasumi, you can sit up."

She obeyed, and I repeated it again to her so she'd understand.

"If you didn't want us to know about it, then we can put it back and pretend we never saw it."

"...You mean...you don't find it weird?"

"Not really, no."

_Man, I'm at a loss for words..._

"This is a secret...but...when I was in elementary school, I used to pretend that I was a princess. Kids used to make fun of me until I stopped in middle school. So I understand...in some manner, I guess."

And to Ella I said, "We understand, right, Ella?"

"Yeah...sure..." she replied complacently, "I mean, I never had that kind of imagination..but sure, let's say I understand."

She put the notebook away and gave all of us a peace of mind. With that out of the way we could focus on how well Kasumi was and if she'd be alright to go to school the next day. With few words she reassured us everything was fine, so the conversation dropped shortly after. I guess the whole "chuuni" thing wasn't a good card to pull out of the hat...

Both Ella and I left at sunset. We waved goodbye to Kasumi and her mother at the door, then split up by the beach. I didn't leave right away because of the view. Back home I hadn't gotten the chance to visit the shore as often as everybody else. The only time I came close to a body of water was a pond and the neighbor's mud hole for the pigs. But the ocean...gosh, was it gorgeous. It just sparkled in the sunlight like a sequin dress and hummed with the waves to a soft tune I hadn't heard before.

I sat down on the sidewalk and took my shoes off. The sand was warm on my feet, and the breeze was just right. The whole day seemed to wash away with the water...

"Mueller...-san?"

Next I knew there was Tachibana-kun standing behind me with his school bag in hand. From down below he looked like a giant, even when he was already that tall to begin with.

"Oh, hey, Tachibana-kun," I said with a smile, brushing off the dirt on my skirt. "You can call me 'Samantha', if you'd like. What with the whole talk we all had in the nurse's office..."

"Oh...'sore ja' _(well, then)_, hello, Samantha-chan."

The way he said my name was...cute? Or was it heart-pounding? I would say both because I loved how he said it and made my heart go, as they say, "dokidoki". I even had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from blushing so hard. It didn't work.

"Okay, 'Makoto-kun'," I replied, finding myself smile gleefully, "what're you doing out here in the evening?"

"I'm running errands for the family dinner. Just to the 'konbini' _(convenience store)_. Are you going there as well?"

"Sure! Why not?"

It was close by, and my grandmother had (surprisingly) texted me to go there at the most convenient of times. So Makoto and I went together. Just as friends. To the store. Together.

I mean, he probably didn't think of it as anything serious. Makoto certainly didn't show it. And, you know, I had to get my grandmother her...cabbages and tomatoes? (I checked my 'keitai' and I could've sworn that that's what it said. But she never put any of those in her stew) So, this wasn't a big deal.

Nope...

But I gotta say, when I talked to him about our families and he talked about his younger siblings so tenderly. Their names were Ren and Ran, one little boy and girl (I think he said they were twins?) who loved their big brother and Haru. I made sure not to smile at him too fondly. It was be a dead giveaway that I was marveling at him.

"How about you, Samantha-chan?"

"Hmm? Oh-my family...Well, most of them are in the US. My mother, father, uncles and aunts, um..my older sister..."

"You're the youngest?"

"Mm...yeah..."

My sister Trish, Tristine, was in college-well, on and off majoring in agriculture and theatre. I wasn't even sure if she even liked acting as much as she loved getting hungover at parties and come home to relieve herself in my bathroom in the middle of the night, but her Ag. professor fought with her about crops and fruits enough for her to change her mind too many times at the bottom of a shot glass. But that was Trish for ya': stubborn, snarky, sarcastic (in a funny way most of the time), and, of course, popular. Her "charm" and party girl attitude in high school got her all of the attention from the crowd and the trouble packaged with it. And she loved teasing me. Horribly.

Other than talking about my wily sibling Makoto helped me translate my grandmother's text at the store. What she actually needed were noodles and vegetable oil (well, hey, I'm not perfect. But the kanji wasn't my strong-suit). He didn't laugh at me when I asked for help or for screwing up two different letters. I guess it was because it wasn't in his nature to be rude like that, but that's what was so good about him. He showed me the aisle to look through and which products were the best to go for. There couldn't be anyone as kind as him in this country. And not back home, at least...

_He wouldn't cheat on you behind your back with your best friend..._

_Ugh..._

_That's it. No more pity party for Sammy. I'll blow a gasket or something if I keep feeling sorry for myself._

"Samantha-chan?"

"Hmm?"

" 'Daijoubu'?"

"S-sorry. I'm fine-"

I looked around. Both of us were walking down a block with our groceries.

"Oh, dangit..."

"Something wrong?"

"Err...I think I missed my usual turn..."

I told him that I could find my way home, but he quickly jumped onto walking me back. That time I really blushed like a schoolgirl in front of him.

"Thank you...for walking me home. You didn't have to..." I said at the doorstep.

"Don't worry about it. It wouldn't feel good to let you walk in town by yourself when it's dark. You can easily get lost."

_Aww..he's looking out for me..wait-looking out for me? Is that just him being polite or-or-_

I bashfully grinned, trying to play it off so I wouldn't get my hopes up. He gave me the same courtesy and wished me good night; I did the same.

And that's how it ended. A few chuckle-headed smiles and "good-nights". Awkwardly. As friends. Just how it should've gone.

But I felt disappointed in the outcome. Good thing that grandma made us her utterly delicious stew for dinner.

"Hot damn! Look at that puppy sizzle!"

That's how she was when she made food.

"Mm-m! I can smell it from in here, grandma!" I hollered from the living room.

To my fortune the two of us didn't have to speak Japanese in the house. Grandma said her text was practice for me to get used to the language barrier and all, but a free-for-all at home.

"Well, Sammy-Dean*, we all deserve a break from rice and curry. Gotta remember some of the wonders we have back home!"

Sammy-Dean was her nickname for me. Samantha Deanne Mueller. Mom and Daddy couldn't think of any other name besides Samantha since they thought of it as a spin on my great-grandmother's name Sawako. Deanne was this grandma's given name, born and bred in Utah. She and grandpa didn't meet until she moved to my hometown in Texas, and my parents didn't meet until my dad moved in with grandpa after college. Out popped Trish, then me a couple years later. That's as much as the Fat Lady will sing, anyway...

"I know I'm up for that."

"You sound tired, darlin'," she stated when I leaned over the counter next to her, chin in my hands and watched the stew boil.

"Oh, I just had a long day is all," I yawned.

"So havin' some boy walk you home is so much fuss for a school day?"

"Grandm-"

"I ain't blind. I can see out the front window...

"Mm-m-m...he reminds me of your grandfather. But he wasn't as tall as that honeydew. Not even like your last-"

"Grandma..."

I pursed my lips, trying to pretend that I couldn't think of "his" name.

"Goodness gracious, child..."

She sighed and told me, "Never mind, doll. Now smile for me so I can see the room light up."

For her I did so, only because I needed an excuse to change the subject.

"There we are! Breath of fresh air for me!"

I gave a little laugh before reaching for the "taster" spoon.

"Hot damn, grandma! Tastes as great as ever!"

She hit me over the head with her ladle and told me, "Don't use that potty talk in my house, Sammy-Dean!"

* * *

"Alright, so it's decided! Samantha-chan will be the girls' captain!"

"Excuse me?"

"Ii-choo!"

"I'm already treasurer, Sam. And Kasumi-chan seems to be preoccupied at the moment..."

"Wha-ii-choo!"

"C'mon, Samantha-chan! You'll be a great leader!"

Saturday afternoon and I got out of school and visited Nanase's house to get together with the team. Not only was I trying to sink in that I had to have a half-day on my weekend and that I couldn't use the old phrase "You're like school on Saturday-no class!", but that I was being pressured into signing our club forms as the girls' team captain. I thought it was a joke until after I lost to Kasumi in rock-paper-scissors (or "janken" over here) and Nagisa began harping at me. Ella was more concerned about keeping her "treasurer" title, Kasumi was obviously too sick to voice her opinion, and the other two boys there just sat back and listened!

_Makoto! I thought you were my knight in shining armor! Why can't you help me now! _I thought_. And where's Kou? Out of all days she gets to try takin' her pictures of the boys..._

But in Kou's stead was one other who had the same habit as hers.

"Samantha-senpai, you'd do great as captain!" Gou piped in.

"Eww, who invited you in?!" demanded Ella.

"I've been here the same time you have..."

Ella was clearly still upset with him after the "incident". He apologized over and over all day before following us to Nanase's house. Now I had to step up and lay some ground rules so Ella wouldn't try to chop his head off. But that meant...

"I guess if no one else can do it..." I started to say.

That was enough to please Nagisa and hush the other two up. Kasumi and Nanase sneezed at the same time, so that was probably a good sign.

Makoto didn't say anything to me privately 'til it was time for us girls to go. By then I was regretting my decision to take the captain position when I heard Nagisa talk about future competitions we had to train for, but Makoto smiled ever so sweetly at me and said, "Since you and I are captains, let's do our best together for the team!"

_Now how could I deny a face like that?_

So I told him, " 'Hai'!"

And as my first act as captain I made the choice to give in and acknowledge Gou.

"I know I was wrong, " he pleaded as he walked home with us, "but if you give me a chance I promise I'll do you rig-I mean, umm-"

"You pig!"

I had to pull Ella back several times from clobbering him.

"You say you want to be the manager, but what do you have to be a good manager?"

" 'Sono'...well..I can talk to Kou-chan about scheduling the pool for you and creating charts for practice routines. If you need me to I can recommend swimsuits for you-"

Ella wanted to leave, but I had her stay.

"Give me a chance...Misuzu-chan, will you take my side?"

She couldn't give anything but a stutter.

"Gou-kun, you don't need anyone to side with you."

I couldn't believe myself say it, but I continued.

"Give me one reason to cut you off as manager and I will. After that you can't say that I never warned you."

He was happy about my decision and ran away with many "thank yous", but it made Ella huffy all the way home. I knew she'd sleep it off that night, but even Kasumi was hesitant. She kept quiet until Monday when Gou officially signed the club application form. Both of my friends weren't happy. Was I even qualified to be a captain?

I was handing out fliers at lunch and going to the pool after school with the others, but I didn't feel right. A new member met us Monday and seemed real sweet, a pretty little thing with a small face, petite figure, and long, wavy teal hair, and I tried as best I could to make her feel welcome. Then I realized that it was the girl from the first day who helped me to the teacher's office, though her real name was Ryuko Michiko (last to first) instead of the opposite. I guess she was referring to my foreign culture then...

She answered the few questions I could think of that were meant to be friendly, but she still had some distance put between us as though she were scared. That sort of thing put me down. When I was on the gymnastics team as a kid I loved getting together with my friends and I was offered a position like "captain" and took it. Then all of those friends acted distant towards me because I had to put my foot down at times.

But I can made things right here. It's different with my new friends and teammates. We're all close-knit!

And we were...sort of. I guess I could call it "my first strike" for screwing up that made it different between Ella and Kasumi and I. I had to admit that the new "manager" was slacking in the up-keep. We weren't in the pool yet, no thanks to the weather, but Kou had talked to a captain at Samezuka Academy for joint-practice, and Gou was more focused on swimsuits than teamwork. Again, my first strike for allowing him on the team too quickly. But I wasn't going to let that stop me from making my best effort as captain.

After all I made a commitment to my friends. And to Makoto.

So, at the end of that week after school all of us got together to ride the train to Samezuka. I had to wipe away the classroom grogginess out of my eyes to keep it together since I had been losing some sleep and my usual pace in studying, but I was perfectly ready to train with the others. And on the plus side-I could dive into cool water and wake up faster!

Before leaving we had to wait for Nagisa and Ella to bring the classmates of there's who were interested in our club. First came Ella with Ryuko (after the quiet period that passed since she was last with us) and quickly following behind was her butler (I forgot to mention that. Nagisa had the whole team go down to the track and see this other guy he wanted on the team, and suddenly this man in a "penguin" suit addresses her as "Lady". It was pretty obvious that she was wealthy even when she tried to deny it and left right away). Then Nagisa and the guy he finally sunk his claws into, "Ryugazaki Rei". He was a studious young fella' who kinda touched his glasses too much and was embarrassed to be around our cherub-faced little swimmer. But beggars can't be choosers.

_I just wish that I could put that manager on a leash.._

Gou wasn't as had as he could be on the train, but as soon as we entered Samezuka's natatorium he perked up like a kid in a candy store (and not in any other way than it sounds like. Y'all just nasty...). It was my responsibility to keep him close by as Makoto had the same issue with Nanase (not with looking at girls awkwardly like the boys' captain Mikoshiba, but with keeping Nanase out of the pool. Unlike earlier when he managed to dip his head in the water like he were going to somersault in). Then taking care of the shy Kasumi cowering behind me, Ella still upset with me, acting encouraging and welcoming to the new members, and greeting the other team captains present.

Right...that'll be something to organize.

Gou. Kasumi. Ella. New kids. Other captains. Stay awake. Remember to go to the store later. Remember to study for the next test. Homework. Shower. Bed.

Just can't catch a break, now can I?

"So, who here is the captain of the boys' team and the girls' team?"

I made my presence known to the red-haired girl like Makoto with a polite bow. She smiled, introducing herself as the Samezuka girls' captain Chie Emi and talked with us girls separately as the boys went to go change. Chie made small conversation with me as an ice breaker starting with my name.

" 'Mueller-san', 'hai'?"

" 'Hai'."

"How's it going with the girls' team so far?"

_Oh, you know, I've got a small-time pervert who I allowed to be our manager running around and having to babysit him without being paid._

"Well, we recently cleaned out the pool and recruited only one new member. There hasn't been a lot of practice, to be honest."

"Ah, I understand. Our team was recently formed as well. But it's good to know where to start off with this time trial."

"Exactly."

_Oh, if only I had your kind of grace and poise, Chie, then maybe I could be able to tackle one of my issues._

In many ways she looked the part of a respectable, elegant young lady. And her teammates treated her like an older sister, some more incorrigible than others, but overall...kindly. So I could be like her and succeed, right?

Then again, Makoto was another case. As a friend he was a sweetheart by default and could be himself, yet as a captain he could say when it was time to be serious and they'd listen. So, maybe it was his bonds with his friends that made him more leader-like?

But Mikoshiba was also different. He could get away with acting like a gym coach and holler orders, and his teammates respected him. Little did he ever cut some slack as far as I could tell.

Too confusing. I had one captain who took control by being "the friend", another who barked orders, and another who walked the fence between each opposing element. Where was I to fit in?

I didn't have a clear head for the practice as we girls changed out of uniforms. It didn't bother me to undress in front of them because I was too preoccupied by my "captain crisis" to care, but I knew by a second nature that Kasumi would have been very embarrassed and wrap a towel around herself then change underneath (which she did as I could recall). Our swimsuits on the other had weren't the greatest of choice for competitive swimming (mine being the lime green plaid bikini that I had for a couple months, and the others' as either old one-pieces-Ryuko's being the nicest of them all. She had a dadgone slick one-piece, chique lavender and black with a lacy cover-up to make it even more modest. How could anyone not see that she was Richie Rich rich?!).

That wasn't the situation at hand. I had to try and be a captain in front of Ella, Kasumi, and Ryuko.

How about as friendly like Chie?

"Alright, girls, let's go watch the guys. Kou, I need you to not drool over their muscles."

Okay...this is good...

"I don't drool."

"No, but you stare. I already have a pervert as a manager to babysit. So silently marvel at them o-"

" 'Nii-chan'!"

Kou then left. Without letting me finish.

"Okay, that's fine. You know what to do, so I'll let you be you," I said to her (well, myself, really). "Guess that just leaves Gou-"

Who was glancing back and forth at each girl close-by. It's one thing to stare, but I saw something shiny and rectangular sticking out of his coat pocket.

A camera!

The team was fine without me while I approached the manager, calmly asking him what he was holding in his pocket.

"It's my 'ke-' umm, my pencil case..."

"Gou-kun, I trust that you know that this joint-practice is important to everyone, but remember that I do keep my end of the deal whether it works-or fails..."

I wanted to hint it more than say it bluntly. It was his first mistake, so a reminder was okay in my book.

"I-I understand..."

He held his head low. He was making a sad puppy face...My heart was breaking...

_Oh no...not the sad puppy face..._

"Thank you, Gou-kun. As your first job as manager can you keep tab on our times for practice? We'll need to know where to start from here."

Not even a second after and he was back to his cheery self and pulling out a notebook and pen from thin air.

_Goodness, I'm a bleeding heart for any person...At least this tackles one issue._

SPLASH!

There went Ryugazaki. And then SPLASH! Ryuko and Ella slipped on the edge of the pool and into the water. Everyone else gawked.

I ran to their side of the pool and looked in. They were fine, just dazed. But I still asked to make sure none of them sprained anything.

"We're good, Sam. My knee just hurts like hell," Ella called back.

"Ryuko-san?"

"I'm quite alright, thank you."

_Thank the Lord!_ I sighed on the inside.

The other captains were trying to recollect their thoughts and everyone else's while the two climbed out of the pool. Some girls went to go find a mope and talked to themselves or Ella and Ryuko, but the guys stayed together. I wouldn't have been surprised.

"Is everyone alright over there?" Makoto asked as he walked towards me.

"We're all fine, thanks. Just surprised is all."

"What a relief! It wouldn't have ended well if someone were hurt..."

"Yeah, thank goodness."

To my relief, Makoto stayed close to me as we watched Nanase hop onto the diving board next. He dove right int and swum around as content as frog in a pond, not even trying to make a record for the time trial. And I guess it was just our team that seemed to notice his calm demeanor in the water. Somehow it was refreshing since we didn't have to tie him down from jumping in.

_Calm, huh? Nanase's just himself in the water...wait a minute! I can be myself as leader..not fear by other or too much the friend, but take control as I would every day..Would that work?_

The only way to know was to try.

After Nanase finished I talked with the girls and then mentioned who'd go up next. But someone beat me to the punchline. Kasumi went up to the diving boards.

_But she can't handle the water yet like last time? Could she?_

"Misuzu-san!"

"Kasumi!"


	4. Plan A to Plan B

Chapter Four:

_Oh, Good Lord in Heaven above, give me strength!_

I watched my tiny friend take a nose dive straight into the pool almost like a puppy plungin' in to fetch their frisbee. Her form probably wasn't the most subtle of all things, but who couldn't practice that, right?

What really scared me the most was her tryin' to swim. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the poor girl to death, but doggone it, it was as if Jaws were coming after her the way she paddled! I had to physically hold myself back from jumpin' in after her. All that time I was prayin' to God that she wouldn't drown like her last encounter with a pool and tried to cheer her on. Besides me mumbling, I could hear Ella saying something under her breath. If anything, they might have been words of encouragement, should she have been just as taken aback as I was.

I sucked in my breath through my teeth when Kasumi made the turn. She fumbled and didn't remember to flip over or push off from the wall. Instead she turned around and continued on. I thought to myself, _Oh, God, it can't get any worse than this...can it?_

Thankfully, it didn't. Kasumi was able to swim the rest of the way, and with a little less furious doggy-kickin' and more smoother glidin'. Even if her time wasn't the best (not by a long shot) I was glad to see her make it in one piece. But I had a hunch about her kicks. I thought that maybe she twisted it the wrong way or she started crampin' at the starting point. If that were the case, then I had to check on her.

The other team captains looked over at me when I approached Kasumi's lane. I waved to them, letting them know that I was taking care of it. They had those faces that said they were thinking the same thing as I had. But Kasumi saw me and the other girls standing above her and smiled with that cute lil' dimple in her cheeks (which was more obvious when I was looking for a twinge in it or some sign that she was in pain). I smiled back and said, "You did good, Kasumi-chan. But are your legs okay? Did you get a cramp?"

"I-I'm quite...alright...," she told me, out of breath.

_Well, I don't know if she's hidin' anything. But I wanna keep a close eye on her...Even if she seems fine._

And I was almost convinced that she was just peachy. The thing that gave her away was her "sea legs" as she followed the team back to our group. Kasumi was wobbling so much that I didn't even have to look behind me to sense her. It was sad but I didn't want to say anything that could've upset her. The poor thing did all she could.

I thought it best to volunteer to go next after Kasumi since the others were still as shocked to see her swim as before. Nanase and Ryugazaki were the only ones eyeing Kasumi, making her feel uncomfortable as others were giving her pep. I had the urge to smack them upside the heads for their indiscreet ogglin'. They turned away before I thought twice about it, then I mounted the diving board as the other girls were waiting for the whistle.

The cool water was soothing as I was swimming, and I didn't have to think about the work put into it. Kind of like how someone has a natural knack for something they never knew that had, that's how I felt. Maybe it was because I was used to things like my Daddy sneakin' up behind me and throwing me into the pool when the family got together on a sunny day, or that I had that knack. Whichever it was made me like a pro. I almost didn't notice that my hands touched the finishing point until something cold brushed my fingertips. I stood tall as I took off my goggles. One other girl in a lane two ways down emerged from the water, then another almost at the same time next to her.

_Did I just...?_

Yep. I made it in first place...Or-I guess, I made the best time. Too bad I didn't look up at the clock to see when I started.

Everyone on our team was impressed with me and my natural talent. Of course, little-miss-Ella's ego had to push her into challenge mode. She bet that she could beat my time with a snooty attitude and did her best to look good doing it. Well, her ego and attitude were about three seconds late, as far as she grumbled. Then came in her temper on time, ironically enough.

Then went Ryuko. For some reason she was too modest with my about her athletic experience. She was spectaucular with her dive, and her time was close to the best. That right there was a sign for me to recruit her before she had a chance to look at any other club.

"As graceful as a swan, yet fast like Nanase-kun. All that and you almost came in first place! Very impressive!" I complimented her as I helped her out of the pool. At first I realized that I was holding my hand out to someone who could've gotten out themselves, but that was our connection, I think. Since the first day of school Ryuko and I were helping each other even when we didn't ask for it. Others could see it as rude, but we saw it as friendship.

Ryuko rose out of the water and ducked down on her knees. "Thank you, Mueller-senpai. But I'm afraid I haven't bested your time, or performed much like you."

"You say that, but times like yours are much needed for our team."

I smiled at her, trying to work my friendly charm on her. If no one could tell that I was aching to see a miracle happen to the team, then that was the moment that it was most tangible. Ryuko could practically smell it on me for all I knew.

She hesitated at first, thinking about my underlying offer with a ghost of a smile on her mouth. A little piece of me sank in disappointment when she did that. It looked like she wasn't so sure about swimmin'...Her eyes wandered off to the side. I pressed my lips together and went for Plan B: back off. I had been too abrasive to lure her in.

Everyone was finished for the day after Ryuko's turn. The girls' team split off to change in the locker rooms, Gou having to be tamed like a feral dog so he wouldn't take his camera out. I swore to myself that one day that boy would have a boot to the behind if he couldn't control his weird habits. He was lucky that I was pooped by the end of practice. So was just about everybody-except for Kasumi. She had a sad cloud hovering over her head ever since I got out of the pool and was more quiet as she watched the others swim. I didn't think too much on it, but when she and I were back in our uniforms I couldn't help but ask her what was wrong.

"What's gotcha' so down, hon'?"

"O-oh,...it's nothing..."

_Bull-honkus. Anyone can tell by her eyes that she's upset. Poor thing can't even lie well..._

"You sure? You've been as meek as a mouse since we got here."

"Gomen..." She looked down at her feet, ashamed.

"You don't have a thing to be sorry for."

I should've stopped there but then everything else after that became a big gob of word vomit.

"You were good today. It's okay if you didn't make the best time or synch your kicks with your arms or...or..."

_Shut up, Sam! Are you trying to make her feel bad?_

"I'm not makin' this any better, am I?"

Just when I was trying to make up for my failure of a pep talk Kasumi flopped onto the bench underneath her and sobbed into her hands.

_Oh, dang! I really blew it! This makes me feel so pitiful...like I kicked a puppy in the gut..._

_ C'mon, I gotta cheer her up fast before she starts to cry._

I tried playing it off with, "Heey, c'mon, you're not that upset about it? Don't cry, hon'."

But Kasumi was far off from worse when she cried, "I promise not to be terrible again, so don't kick me off the team!"

"Kick you of-hey, I wouldn't do that to you! Kasumi-chan, look here." I became more serious after hearing her say that. It was almost insulting to think that she couldn't trust me as a captain or a friend. Kasumi was a timid soul but I knew that she could do just as good as anyone else if she gave enough of herself to the sport.

"I'd never kick someone off because they thought they were terrible at their first practice. I believe that if you have the motivation and the heart, you're as good as anyone to be here with the team."

She seemed to have calmed down some, so nothing stopped me from rambling on about her main issue.

"Kasumi-chan, you gotta have some confidence in yourself. You did wonderfully out there and you should be proud. This is a big step for our team to come together. And you being a part of it makes it all the better."

My friend managed a small smile for me, nodding her head before twiddling her thumbs shyly.

"Kasumi-chan, is there something you haven't told me? Something that would be good to get off your chest?"

Her face grew pale in a ghostly shade, her eyes slightly wide. I hit the nail on the head.

"I...I'm just..I haven't been swimming in a long time. So I'm...not as good."

_Wait...That's the problem?_

"Really? You haven't even been to a public pool? When's the last time you've gone swimming?"

"Umm...a couple of years ago..I guess...?"

She settled into her seat much more comfortably after spillin' her beans. I couldn't imagine how something that simple was her problem. She was too balled up in anxiety to let loose. Such a quiet and fragile lil' thing needed Ella's and my help bad to work on her social skills. And the team to help her relax in the water.

Speaking of the devil, Ella picked that time to bark at us, "Hey, are you two ready or not?"

"We're comin'! No need to get your panties in a twist!" I hollered back.

"It's 'knickers'. 'Knickers' in a twist!"

"_Americans say 'panties', dangit!_"

"_Yeah, what other phrases haven't you already screwed up...?_"

There went that dang mouth of hers.

I stood up in protest, rounded the corner demanding, "You do know that I can hear you mumblin' back there!"

"Maybe I wanted you to hear t-hey, don't look at me! I don't have my shirt on!"

"Yeah, and you're the one wanting to rush us out of here!"

"_Oh, bugger off!_"

She and I broke into giggles at that last part. Someone close by, like me, could've heard her voice crack like a fifth grade boy, and it was hysterical. For a person like Ella to goof up her harsh demeanor, I didn't think she'd be able to laugh at herself. But I guess that day was full of surprises for me.

Later, when we thanked the Samezuka team for inviting us over and our group rode the train home, everything had died down to simple chatter that Nagisa was the center of. I gave up my seat to Kasumi so she could get closer to the action, but partly because I wanted some solace to think. Ryuko left earlier to ride with her "uncle" home, looking flustered when she was saying goodbye. I had my problem with recruiting members, and then Kasumi's confidence in her swimming. And, of course, Gou who needed to pull his "manager" act together.

_Ugh, there's a lot that I need to keep control of. I didn't think of how much responsibility I'd be taking when I agreed to become the captain...I'm not giving up on it...I just don't know where I should go from here..._

"Is everything okay, Samantha-chan?" a gentler voice spoke to me.

Makoto had been standing next to me. I couldn't help but wonder if he had noticed me thinking to myself, making weird faces all through that.

"Uh, y-yeah, I'm fine. Seems like everybody's pumped up after our joint practice." I turned away from him so that he couldn't see my nervous grin and that the conversation would go steer clear of me.

"Yeah. Thank goodness...I almost thought Ryugazaki-san would've left when he told us that he couldn't swim."

"What? Because I thought that he was hooked onto Nanase-kun's form."

"Mm, yeah, there's that. But I think the new environment was a bit much for him."

"Oh, I see..."

Ryugazaki was blushing at something that Nagisa mentioned to him, causin' a bout of laughter from the rest of the group sitting down (minus Nanase). I smiled as Kasumi giggled with Kou, happy to see that she was relaxing.

"You seem happy that Kasumi-chan is doing better," Makoto stated.

"Yeah," I sighed, "I'm just worried about her since she told me she-"

When I looked back at him I realized that I slipped too much detail than I should've.

Makoto curiously glanced at me and asked, "Is she alright? Some of the others thought that maybe she had a leg cramp."

"U-Umm..."

_I can't tell him, can I? Kasumi would probably want this to be kept between me and her._

"Er, it's just a personal matter," I answered, mentally patting myself on the back for that good one.

"Oh..."

_Great, he's got that depressed good-lookin' face. Why in all of God's creation does he have to have a handsome face no matter what expression he has? _

"It's nothing against anybody. I just think that Kasumi-chan would be embarrassed if anyone else knew that-"

"-she's not confident in herself or to swim with us?"

"H-how-?"

"When you swim with people like Haru-chan, you can easily tell what they're thinking without having them say it. Kasumi-chan is an open book like him, I guess."

_Well, how 'bout that?_

"So, it was that obvious that she was scared?"

"Not for everybody. But for captains like us..."

I sighed, feeling a little bit better that he understood but a little more cautious about Kasumi's secret going elsewhere.

"Ano, sa-"

As he was about to say something the car doors opened after the train stalled on parking. The rest of the group swarmed the exit like a school of fish, any other stranger right behind them. I'd lost sight of Makoto when everyone gather closer to my side. A random businessman strided by me, bumping my shoulder. The guy had enough strength to shove me over and not so much as blink, especially when I was leaning through the exit.

_And I suppose that I'll hit my head on the railing and pass out? Or the much more cliche approach where someone will-_

Cliche approach. I was on top of the game when I should've been that way with practice. How does that luck work out on my part, anyway?

"Samantha-chan!"

Makoto caught me in a dip like he and I were ballroom dancin'. A flutter in my chest had me giddy as a schoolgirl while I praised, "Hey, nice catch!" despite the awkward situation.

"Uh..no-no problem. A-Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I stood up straight and smiled, proving to him that him touching me hadn't fazed me in the slightest. He brushed it off like me and walked with me to the others outside the station, much to my delight. We split off to form with our own teams until it became just him, me, and Nanase.

I was roundin' the corner to go home when Makoto approached me before I said goodnight.

"About earlier..."

"About...Kasumi?"

"Yeah. I was going to ask if she's still willing to swim or if she's too afraid. Maybe she'll come back and try again."

_Our biggest fear about getting recruits has him on edge like me. If Kasumi is too afraid, then she'd quit..._

"I have confidence in her. She's a fragile little thing, but I know that she aims for her goals with a lot of determination."

"I'm glad to hear that."

When he glowed with his sweet smile, I felt sure of myself like I knew that everything was going to be okay. And a little nervous like the times before. I had to make sure to keep myself calm the next time he did that.

"Well, I'll see you later."

"'Kay. Bye-bye!"

I tossed and turned in my bed thinking about what he had mentioned. With me being a team leader for the others it was hard to think of ways to help someone out when you just couldn't tell what they were thinking. Makoto may be good with that but for me I was wranglin' too much for my team. Kasumi's confidence, Ella's problems with Gou, Gou's managerial front...couldn't there be a way to put them all together and talk out a compromise?

...Hold the phone...

_Sam, say that again._

_"Couldn't there be a way to put them all together and talk out a compromise?" _

_Okay. Now that doesn't sound too bad. _

_Ella and Gou would finally be able to talk out their issues, but Kasumi...Kasumi needs someone who can teach her how to handle her fear...Someone who knows how to swim without even-_

I sat up in bed, coming up with the perfect solution.

_Eureka! I found the answer! _

* * *

While walking to school the next morning I had gone through my entire plan again. First I'd have a group meeting with both teams and make up an excuse for everyone to talk to each other, Ella would mention something insulting and would want Gou to react, then I'd settle them down and have them talk out their issue. Second of all would be to talk to Kasumi and ask her if she wanted someone to coach her on her swimmin' technique. Then I introduce her to my brilliant idea and become a great captain for getting the team together. Done-and-done.

Kasumi met me by a street corner and walked with me to school. I babbled on about the team and how our practice went yesterday, and she quietly listened. She was in a better mood than earlier, all wide-eyed and bushy tailed for the morning. I was happy to see her back to her regular self that I kept talking until something caught in my eye in the courtyard. She stopped to see if I was okay, and when I told her that it was probably my eye liner she cocked her head to the side like a confused puppy.

"Samantha-chan? You...you wear makeup?"

"Yeah. I've worn it since I hit puberty. What's wrong?"

"Oh-oh..n-nothing! It-It's just that-"

"It's that not a lot of girls here wear makeup at school." _Of course, Ella arrives on time to make her appearance right here._

"Really? They don't wear it here?" I asked.

"I don't think it's against the rules here, 'cuz I've worn mascara since day one and still get away with it. But there's also a sort of girl-code that says we don't wear makeup unless there's a guy involved."

"What? Like a crush?"

"Yeah, I guess...but don't take it from me seriously. I'm only in on half the stuff here anyway..."

_Or they must like the natural look. So, maybe anyone else like me would be labeled "painted whore" for wearing something noticeable like eye shadow. Doesn't sound much different from my old high school..._

Tempting as it was to wash my face in the lil' ladies room after hearing that, I couldn't help but turn to Kasumi to hear what she wanted to say. She stared into space unaware that Ella and I were thinking mischievously on how to tease her.

"I think Kasumi-chan would look so adorable with a little lip gloss on!" I said with a nudge to Ella.

"She already looks like a doll. Her lashes are so long that she doesn't need any mascara," Ella teased.

Kasumi blushed when she heard us. Our little friend avoided looking at us as she cowered back.

"Aww, she's getting all shy! That's so cute!"

"Y'know, I think I have some balm in my bag that we can put on her lips."

I didn't think that she would take it that far...But she backed off as soon as our manager caught us.

"What's this about lip balm?"

"Not you..."

I thought he'd be uninterested if I told him that it was "girl stuff", but instead he replied, "Are swimsuits involved? Because I can offer a lo-"

"Please, for-the-love-of-GOD, do-not!-talk..."huffed Ella.

"But it qualifies as-"

It was obviously going to turn into a fiasco, so I stepped in to quell the tension.

"Sorry, guys, but the bell just rang."

So I lied. What else was I going to say to stop them? It worked, anyhow. Ella ran for the entrance as quick as a hummin' bird and Gou went on his way with his guy friends. The fact that they bought it was surprising, but I wasn't going to complain.

My morning had been lookin' better after that. Class was a breeze and I didn't have gym to wear out my already-tired muscles. I'd call that a win-win if I hadn't noticed that Kasumi was soaring towards Cloud-Nine every time a new class began. So far it was normal for her to zone out, but that time she was hot in the cheeks and her eyes were twinkling with some random thought. I made a mental note to let her copy my notes when we went home for the day, seeing as how she didn't get a single one down in her notebook.

Once the bell rang for lunch our other classmates dispersed into their own groups. Makoto and Nanase asked for Kasumi and me to gather 'round their desks to talk, which I thought was a great idea considering that I needed to let them know about my plans for the team later. So I turned to Kasumi to ask her over, and there she was. Staring at the board with glossy eyes with the expression of a squirrel spotting a nut on a neighborin' tree.

"Kasumi-chan? Oh, Kasumi-chan?" I softly sung in her ear.

Seeing her jump a mile into the air almost had me in tears rolling on the floor. She faced me as I laughed, "Looks like someone was off in Lala Land. Have a nice nap?"

"I-I-I-"

"I'm just teasin' you! No need to be so bashful. C'mon, all of us are talkin' about our next practice!"

I scooched my desk closer to the boys before she did the same. Makoto looked at me as if he wanted me to say something first.

"So," I began, "we'll met the others at the pool after they buy lunch?"

"Hai," he answered back. "I think Nagisa-kun mentioned something about 'a challenge' that he wanted to take care of."

"Alrighty, then." I let that sink in before I had came out clean with my "suggestion". "Well, I think there should be a meeting after school today. Everybody should talk to each other about what they want to see in the near future for the club and what they'd want to do on their teams."

"That sounds great!"

"Thanks...I think because of yesterday that we should work together to build team trust. It's always important to rely on each other."

"Hai. I know that Haru-chan, Nagisa-kun and I have been together since childhood, but it's still necessary to have trust between each team, especially since we're going to have to share the pool."

"Yeah."

And just to humor Kasumi I added, "And, y'know, I think everybody did excellent yesterday, don't you think so?"

"Of course!"

"What do you think, Nanase-kun?"

To make sure she knew that I was proving my point to her, I winked in Kasumi's direction and turned to Nanase. He didn't answer me straight away, but there was a pause while he moved his lips then glanced at Kasumi.

All of a sudden she whimpered, "I'm sorry I'm so terrible at swimming! I know I'm not th-that good..."

"Hey, Kasumi-chan! What's wrong?"

Then it hit me: Nanase was mumbling. But mumbling about Kasumi?

"Were you mumbling about her?"

"What're you talking ab-"

"That's not nice, Nanase-kun! The poor girl tried her hardest yesterday."

"I don't know what yo-"

"Oh, good. Kou-chan! Will you take Kasumi-chan down to the cafeteria?"

A friend of hers tagged along with the same concerned face as Kou's. She asked if everything was alright, so I lied, "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to take Kasumi-chan down myself, but apparently I have to have a talk with the boys."

I handed her some of my pocket change and told her that Kasumi could use it to buy food. My little friend bowed to us at the desks before sulkily trudging away with the ginger-head and company, holding back a few tears from the sudden surprise.

When I looked back at Nanase and Makoto, the only one who seemed affected by the situation was the other captain. Nanase glowered at the door.

I pressed my lips into a thin line, and then said, "Walk with me."

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. You didn't actually say anything about her. You just happened to mistake her for another person while you were thinking about it?"

Nanase nodded as all of us waited by the pool for the team.

"Ugh...Okay...Oookay...I get it."

"Thank goodness we could clear this up," Makoto sighed.

"Well, for me, yeah. But Kasumi-chan somehow assumed that you were picking on her, Nanase-kun."

He frowned to the side.

"I'm sorry for getting upset with you. That was a big mistake on my part.

"But you'll have to come clean with Kasumi-chan soon before she takes it too much to heart."

Nanase grumbled an agreement like a stubborn child. I turned to Makoto as his friend stepped away and confided, "I had some of it under control, but now that Kasumi-chan's heart's been crushed..."

"I'm sure that we'll figure something out."

"Yeah...do you think we should ask him to explain it after school at the meeting?"

Makoto looked behind me and greeted, "Oh, Ryuko-san."

"Good afternoon."

I made my way towards her thinking, _I don't think I have the heart right now to hear she doesn't want to join, _but smiled all the same to hide my doubts. "What can I do for you?"

"Mueller-san, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to hand in my club application form."

_Lemme put this together..._

"Oh! Does this mean you're interested in...?"

"Hai."

She better believe that made my day better. I lit up like the fourth of July sayin', "Thank you so much! We will be very happy to have you!"

I quickly passed off her form the Ms. Ama who was sunbathing on her lawn chair with her dark-colored umbrella. Makoto breathed a sigh of relief to Nanase about finding another member for my team. It was great and all, but it left his to find one more quickly.

"Yeah, but that Ryugazaki guy was your last hope for keeping your team from disbanding or something, wasn't he?"

"Ah..I guess. It isn't necessarily going to disband us as it is putting our team in a bind. We can't collect money to train somewhere or go to competitions if we don't have the minimum members...But it's all up to him to want to join."

"Oh...huh..."

My back was turned but I could sense the others from the cafeteria coming towards us. From the corner of my eye I saw Nanase's gaze flicker at them. It wasn't hard to see that he was looking at Kasumi, but whether he wanted to apologize or not remained unspoken between him and Makoto and I.

However, my plan to have someone coach Kasumi sparked a candle light in my mind. An idea so great and opportune came to me.

Hey, Nanase-kun?"

"Hmm?"

"Y'know, there is a way to make it up to Kasumi-chan."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you'll see..."

"Why are you smiling?"

"Don't worry about it."

And for once, Nanase actually showed emotion on his face. Fear.

* * *

Both teams gathered by the poolside in an almost circular shape after school. Kasumi stood close to me on my right, Makoto on my left. I took a single breath as I thought of how I could initiate the meeting.

"Thanks for gettin' together with us, everyone. I don't think we've been able to have a proper meeting until now, but we won't begin training until next time.

"So, guys, Makoto and I wanted all of us to meet here to start out with a few simple things. One, that we talk about strengths and weaknesses, two, what we feel that we can do as a team, and three, if there's anything we can do in the near future.

"But, Nagisa-kun recommended that we see Ryugazaki-san at the track. While we're still waiting for his response on joining the team, it would be nice to cheer him on while he's practicing with the track team."

"So," Makoto finished, "is there anything that anybody would like to say first?"

Crickets...that's all I could hear. And depression bubbling inside me...That too...

"I wonder if Ella-chan and Michi-chan are going to take long..." Nagisa pouted.

_That's..not a part of the conversation..._

There weren't any other takers on my excellent team-building strategy. One minute it was fool-proof, the next it was flyin' out of the window like a live turkey runnin' away from a Thanksgiving dinner.

Plan B...

"Well, I feel that as a team we should be able to establish trust between one another. We don't have to be friends, but it's important to have each other's backs, no matter what.

"Now,...Nanase-kun. Is there something you'd like to say to Kasumi-chan?...Specifically about something she heard you say before...?"

Kasumi glanced at me as if I challenged him to a duel. I eagerly waited for Nanase to spill his guts, not wanting to think that something would pop out so that I'd jinx the whole thing. But I guess writing it down here counts.

"Nanase-senpai did something to upset Kasumi-chan, didn't he?" Gou asked. "I thought I heard you all talking about something like that."

_When was he there to hear us talk about it?_

"I never said anything like that-"

"If you like making girls cry maybe I need to teach you a thing or two!"

_Seriously? ...Seriously?_

What would you do to Nanase-kun?" Kou countered him.

"Uh-I..well, I'd-I-I'd push him into the pool!"

"Gou-kun, that's more of a pleasure to him than a threat," I pointed out.

"Okay...then I'd empty out the pool!"

The weak little runt couldn't even take a punch from a girly girl. How on Earth could he manage to do something that needed arm strength when he doesn't even have flab?

He proved my point when he backed away from Nanase's death glare like a wimp. I'd had enough of the shenanigans that I jumped the case with, "Okay, I take it back. I'm just stepping back and letting him say what he needs to say to Kasumi-chan!"

I had Kasumi step up to him to hear it. She was scared to face him, but after hearing him out she apologized for her behavior with a bow. So grateful that the worst was over, I thought I could address my Plan A again with the group before seeing Ryugazaki at the track field.

"Awesome! Now that we have that-"

"I'm going to go look for Ella-chan and Michi-chan!" our little Goldilocks said as he dashed for the exit.

I wasn't able to stop him or get to hear a civil conversation between any team members. We left to go find the three chased Ella down after finding her shoving Nagisa away, watched Ryugazaki fail to fling himself over a pole at the track, then him bow and ask to join the boys' team. I had to accept after dealing with a huffy Ella that Gou and she would have to talk some time later, and that sometimes I had to let things ride out on their own. It was a downer, but I didn't have to try so hard. Whether I was a good captain by being myself was going to work or not would answer itself later, whenever that'd be. The team being able to celebrate their new member joining made me forget about trying to be a leader. Having friends around to be with you was what truly mattered to us.

As the sun was setting the team broke off to go home. The last of us, Makoto, Nanase, Kasumi and I stayed behind to get our outdoor shoes on and talk about one final act as a team for the day.

Kasumi was curious about what we were wanting to talk to her about, so I explained, "Well, all of us were talking about a few things. Specifically,..we were talking about your confidence in swimming."

Makoto offered, "We feel that we could help you, if you'd like, with your technique."

Kasumi quivered in her shoes, but she asked anyway, "H...How would you do that...?"

"Since Nanase-kun is the most experienced, and he promised to do it after that whole mix-up earlier..." I took over.

"No, I di-"

"How would you like to pair up with him after school to learn a few tricks to boost your morale, Kasumi-chan?"

She stood still and gazed at Nanase with her cheeks burning red. On the inside I wished that she wouldn't faint, but I had a good feeling about the offer.

That, and she wasn't growing pale with nausea.

* * *

_A/N: I am so so so so so sorry for updating so late. Nearly three months into this story and I've been backed up in my schedule. I'm going to try to get more done faster so that I can finish by Christmas (or at least New Year's Eve) for you guys. _

_On another note, I wanted to let you all know that the feedback has been good. So far FAtW has reached over 200+views, and for the three followers thank you so much for your support so far. I greatly appreciate anything and anyone I come across as I'm writing. It gives me a lot of courage to keep going with the story and as a writer to practice everything I've got to make it big as an author later on. Again, thank you very much! _

_See you all in the next chapter! _


	5. How the Sparks Flew

Chapter Five:

There were a lot of things I didn't understand about my friend Kasumi. One of them was that I shouldn't put her on the spot, but I did that anyway. Right in front of Makoto and Nanase, too. I should've also remembered that she was much more shy around boys than anyone else, which I had no idea why, but...oh heck, I wasn't one to beat around the dang bush when it came to something urgent.

"Hey, Kasumi-chan? You still thinkin'?" I asked.

She turned an awful shade of white, but it subsided in a matter of seconds. She looked up at me with splotches of red on her face for cheeks once she was ready to answer.

"O-okay..."

"What'd you say there, hon'?"

"I'll do it. I'll take you up on your offer."

She faced Nanase, thanking him for his help as I stood back feeling glad for being proven wrong on my doubts. For a second there I thought she'd turn it down, but she took it like a good sport and made a face that seemed to say, "I'm determined! I can do it!".

"Awesome!" I responded with a clap of my hands. "Alright, so, Kasumi-chan, you and Nanase-kun can start after our first practice. How about you two sleep on that for the big day tomorrow?"

Makoto was all for it, Nanase-eh, he was hush like a puppy, but Kasumi was too into it, her reaction too strong. A red flag flew up right at that moment. So how was I gonna believe her then? My new hunch had me split the group up so that I could talk to her in private. If it were the boys that she were nervous around, then I'd have to really dig deep to find her real problem.

Walking down the sidewalk in silence had me thinking, _Maybe she might feel like I outed her in front of our classmates and hates me for it. Or she doesn't take well to the pressure I put on her. _But I didn't want that to be true. I'd feel ashamed if she said yes to something that she didn't really wanna do.

"You okay?" I rushed to ask. "Nervous?"

"I...I guess."

_At least she's being honest with me. Maybe it's just my imagination that got me worried...?_

"N-aw, don't worry about it. Nanase's a natural when it comes to swimming. I just think it'll take a bit for him to get used to helping someone as cute as you."

Did poking fun at her work? Well, it made her react, I'll say that much. I never knew that I could go overboard. Or that the hole I wanted to dig was actually for me.

I went on teasing her, saying things like, "He always did come off as the 'silent' type", and, "But maybe he l-i-k-e-s yo-ou!". She was bashful, but at the last part she sunk to her shoulders and whimpered, "I..I'm not..."

I already knew what she wanted to say without finishing.

When I turned to her I could almost sense the familiar sadness that I had gone through coming from her, the feeling of not being wanted, of not being capable to love again. The last thing I'd want for her to think is that she wasn't good enough for that. I smiled and told her, "Don't doubt yourself. When the time comes, you'll find the right guy. He'll see the most beautiful qualities in you that you never saw, and he'll fall in love with you and all of your perks..and your faults..."

For getting emotional I hated myself. I made a promise not to let it bug me. It was getting old, frustrating, honestly, to keep thinking about "it". I knew it'd take a while to get over it, but not that long. And not that painfully. What made me even more depressed was when Kasumi asked me if I'd ever been in love. My honest-to-God answer was, "You could say that, but 'love'...probably not.".

To tell her I'd felt something close only to love made a cold chill run down my spine. It was realization that hit me hard. But I had to accept it. What I felt for my last boyfriend, Brandon, wasn't love. "Infatuation", or better yet "puppy love" ever since the seventh grade and he bought me a pendant and a teddy bear as big as a half-grown cow. Then he changed in high school, he got overly touchy, and he'd get more upset when I told him to back off. _So he went off to find someone else to knock boots with because I wanted to save it for later. And he found it with my best friend, Jess. More like ex-best friend...Should've seen it coming. Should've noticed how much she liked him when I was dating him..._

When he told me the truth that day, I felt...numb. Taken aback like he made a really bad joke. He interrupted me as I was about to tell him that my parents wanted to send me to Japan to live with Grandma. After Brandon explained it all and said he was breaking up with me I should've sunk my fist into his jaw. But...instead he and I stood there, waiting for me to say something and I couldn't muster any words. My world was crushed in a matter of seconds...The my body took over and walked away from him, speechless.

So I had to forgive and forget. While it was uncomfortable to tell Kasumi about it, I did feel a slight lift off of my shoulders. If moving on had to start with talking, then I'd do it.

I readjusted myself and tried to face my friend with a more positive outlook.

"But, hey, I want you to know that I only want to tease you because I don't want you to stress yourself over doing a great job. You do the best that you can do, and I'll support you every step of the way."

We walked on, Kasumi taking confident strides with me to my street after she made the promise to me. Before leaving I turned around, getting a little sheepish to see her fluster again. Something to make me feel a little happier.

"Oh, Kasumi-chan?"

"Yes?"

"By the way, I wanted to tell you that you're lucky."

"L-lucky...?"

"Yeah. You get a one-on-one session with a half-naked guy. Not a lot of girls get the chance, so you better not blow your opportunity!"

"W-What?!"

I wanted to laugh. She turned beet red with her mouth hanging wide open like a gaping fish. At first I thought she'd relax and joke about it with me, but once again I was proven wrong.

There were a lot of things about Kasumi. And when she fell forward on the sidewalk pavement I learned that not only did she faint on the spot of seeing water or being pushed into it, but that she also couldn't handle being teased about seeing shirtless boys or washboard abs, period.

* * *

Her mom reassured me that it was somewhat normal for Kasumi to "overreact". I brought her home and sat with her mother in the living room while Kasumi was sleeping it off in her room. Her mom thanked me for helping her daughter get home, and after that it was a bunch of small talk. Like any proud mother, she went on about Kasumi's childhood. I expected to hear about times where she got scared of riding the swing set or her first time eating ice cream, but not about her family moving from place to place in the past couple of years. To me it sounded like my friend was deprived of fun. She had to keep being the new kid at school nearly every year. No wonder she was scared of me the first day. She didn't want to make friends so quickly because she was afraid of losing them.

"Kasumi-chan's had a lot of trouble adjusting to that, and...she's also had a..fear...to swimming..."

"Swimming?"

"Mm-hm...There was a day we all went to the beach when she was younger. While her father and I were setting out our blanket her friend Nanami-chan screamed. She pointed out to the water, and..there was my baby splashing in the water..being carried away. A young boy with her group of friends saved her, then disappeared, but my baby was never the same after that. She'd have frequent panic attacks and fainted more often, especially near water. But showers she could handle...of all things..."

_That doesn't make a lick of sense...Why did Kasumi join the club if she's afraid of water? _

I thought about every reason even after I left Kasumi's house and went back home to Grandma. It went on to midnight as I was laying in bed that I realized Kasumi's intention. She was suffering to face her demons head-on. Or she'd go through the Trials of Hercules to make friends. _No, cut that. I thought she was afraid of making friends because she'd lose them quickly. _

Being half-asleep in bed wasn't fun when it came to decoding people. Soon I started to think that the wood chuck couldn't but could, and then saw sheep hoppin' over fences.

* * *

During class the next day I decided to be extra careful with Kasumi. It was our first time using the pool and when we all changed in the locker rooms I was relieved that we wouldn't be doing anything serious. Only Ryuko was prepared for hardcore training with her best swimsuit as the rest of us beside her were wearing old suits that lasted the years before. Mine was a simple yellow-green two piece I got to wear once to a family vacation in Florida. I hated the color, but the polka-dot pattern looked cute. Plus, it was the only one I could get my hands on before the plane flew in to take me to Japan. At the time I was packing I wasn't exactly myself, either...

Practice went well, surprisingly. Kasumi actually jumped into the pool before any of us. The others I had to stop from staring at Ryugazaki's contortion of stretches. Ever since then Ella had been snippy as per usual towards me. Her attitude I was akin to, so of course I ignored it. My main concern was seeing how Kasumi would do. I started out with exercises for everyone to do, and we got through those before an interruption. One that had glasses and the confidence of a bull.

I was just about to move on to floating techniques that Makoto told me about at lunch when Ryugazaki hopped onto the fifth diving board where some of us girls were standing close to. He was so determined to perfect a dive, yet he was worse than the first time at Samezuka...Just plopped right in like a Sheltie dog cannon balling on its stomach.

I had so little of words that I told the girls, "Um...okay. Well, he's okay. Let's..get back to the practice..."

No one argued with me there. We went right back to learning the turtle float. Even Kasumi gave twice the effort. _But that was because she didn't want to do what Ryugazaki did-Fail...big time..._

The day ended when the sun was burnin' yellow-orange in the afternoon sky. Ryuko had a ride to catch and couldn't be held up any longer and Ella was losing the energy to sass me. All the boys and girls got out of the pool at the same time to wash at the showers and get into dry clothes-except for Nanase. He waited in the water for Kasumi as she waddled back to the girls' lockers.

I was going after her when Makoto caught my attention.

"It looked like your practice went very well today, no?"

"Yeah, and I could say the same for yours, too."

"Oh, well, thanks. But it was more focused on one particular person than the whole group."

"Really?"

I didn't notice any thing of their's other than Ryugazaki's big flop that disturbed my group, so I was technically blowing smoke at him.

"Yeah...but he's doing better. He doesn't know it, but he's catching on."

The girls' locker room door shut behind Kasumi. I turned back to Makoto and asked, "Hey, if you're not doing anything after hitting the lockers, did you want to stick around...with me for the other two...?"

"Sure. I'll get changed."

"'Kay."

I followed behind Kasumi, and he went down the stairs towards the other direction. Ella and Ryuko waved goodbye as I opened my locker and started peeling off my suit like a banana peel. And who was standing by in a corner? Kasumi. Shivering and cuddling her towel close to her body. _She should be out there starting her sesh with Nanase, _I thought.

But there was the early memory of her intolerance to water that I was afraid to trigger.

_I need to approach this firmly, but gently. Last thing I want is to make her repeat yesterday's habit._

"Ready to go?"

She peeked up at me with her big blue eyes. I pulled my shirt down over my head and continued, "Remember what I said before? No freaking out."

"I-I understand."

"I won't kid with you about it like the last time, seeing as how I made you react, so-good luck. Makoto-kun and I'll be back in about an hour," I told her with a less firm tone.

"Hai."

Kasumi seemed to perk up with a nervous smile, so I left her there to meet back with Makoto. I thought I sounded too motherly, but Kasumi didn't seem to be intimidated by it.

I waved to her and then shut the entrance door behind me.

Outside Makoto stood at the foot of the stairs facing my way. I was tying my wet hair behind my head with a rubber band saved inside my pocket as I descended the steps. It was like I was a princess being escorted to a ball, as far as my imagination went. Makoto smiled and turned to me, and I smiled back. That dream shot right out the window of my thoughts as I fell back down to earth. It was funny, but stupid how I got carried away with imaginative metaphors. People like me don't have anybody to go to a ball with...and that was a fairy tale illusion. My school uniform was a bit informal for a dance, anyway.

"Did you want to wait in the library?" Makoto suggested as i took the last step. "I thought maybe you wanted to do some homework in the mean time."

"Sure. I told Kasumi-chan that I'd be back in an hour or so, so let's do it."

"Okay." He lead the way with his go-to sweet smile as I walked by his side. With nothing else to do we chatted about more random conversations like we had the other times we'd had by ourselves. I found myself talking and chiding with him like I didn't have a care in the world, just like before. Makoto was clearly a bad idea to keep around me. I didn't want to jump right into the fray of high school life that dealt with teen emotions and angst. I was too comfortable with him, and yet that's how I wanted it to be. Comfortable. Laughing and feeling free. But not so fast...

And Makoto really was the most polite and the sweetest. But too kind?...No..Well, maybe. His kindness felt like euphoria to me, so addictive and so enticing. I'd never been treated like that since I moved in. So I guess it was just me. Someone who craved kindness to make up for the hurt.

"Here we are." He slid open the door to let me in first.

"Oh,...thanks."

The library was somewhat small for us students. Most of the room was taken up by columns and tables that it was a maze for me to crawl around in. Seeing one like that had me thinking that the school library back in Texas was as huge as a mall with the wide open space it had.

"Over here."

Makoto found a small table by a window with a few matching chairs to spare. Most of the furnishing fit an old, dusty-lookin' theme for a library. Mahogany shelves, dark wooden tables, dated yellow-tan wall paint. I could nearly smell the mustiness of the books from my seat. I sat myself across from Makoto as he and I pulled out our notebooks from our school bags. My handwriting scrawled over the pages was almost all Japanese, save for a few things in English to remind me to write in both. I was in the middle of a break through with my kanji by translating English in the same line, but it was hard for me to read the tiny letters.

I was reading notes and writing answers on homework sheets when I struggled with a sentence. Because I accidentally brushed my thumb over the graphite I couldn't remember the kanji that my teacher had copied on the board.

Pulling my bangs behind my ear certainly didn't help, so I sat back in my seat to remember what the History teacher wrote. _C'mon, remember what he at least said! Something about an era with an M. What was it?_

"Is something wrong?"

I glanced back at Makoto who had already closed his Math notebook.

"Oh,...it's nothing," I politely grumbled, "just forgot a kanji."

"Oh..."

"Hey, actually, I had a question." I suddenly sprang to action as I flipped over my notebook to him. "Which era started with an 'M'?"

"'M'? You mean 'Muromachi'?"

I gasped as quietly as anyone could in a library. "_Hot dang! _That's it!"

"I'm glad I could help...But you know you wrote 'Muromochi' instead of 'Muromachi', right?"

"What?"

The smudge I made earlier turned the word into Muro-mochi. It was funny that I could translate that in my head and yet I was thinking of food in class when I was writing that down. It was too funny that I found myself burst into peals of laughter while fixing my notes.

"What's so funny?" Makoto asked so concernedly.

"It's-" I took a deep breath before explaining, "It's just that it reminded me of food. Muro-'mochi', Muromachi?"

When he got the joke, Makoto chuckled to himself with a voice as smooth as silk and charming as church bells. I bit my lip to keep from laughing with him, and also to hear his laughter for a little longer. But I cracked a smile feeling more and more comfortable with his joy bouncing off of him.

"That is pretty funny," he admitted after he paused to catch his breath.

"Isn't it? Oh, man, and I didn't mean to do that. It just popped up out of nowhere!"

"Really? Because I'd say that you're very comedic."

_Where is this going? And what does he mean?...I'm not sure if I like this or not..._

"How so?" I replied with a playful smile.

His cheeks grew pink as he told me, "Oh, well,...you're funny in a good way. And very outgoing. I...I admire that of you..."

_"What makes me so special out of all the other girls here?" I asked Brandon in the library._

_"I think you're funny," he said a matter-o-factly. "And clever. And smart."_

_"Stop it!" I giggled._

_"What? It's true!"_

_"Yeah, right!"_

_"If you go out with me, I'll prove to you that you are different!"_

_"Go out with you? Hmm, so tempting!"_

_"C'mon! Just one date!"_

_"...May-be..."_

"Samantha-chan?"

I quickly turned to my homework. The sudden memory of seventh grade came up to bite me like a wild dog, and I felt an anxious quell stir in my belly.

I coughed and then gave Makoto a dumb excuse. "Sorry...I just lost my train of thought."

"I'm sorry if I might have said something upsetting."

"Huh?" I looked back up at him. "You didn't...I-I just...remembered something."

"'Remembered something'?"

"Well,...nothing important, that's for sure. I guess..ugh! It's just stupid!"

I grinned back at him to divert the limelight from the matter.

"But...thank you,...Makoto-kun."

His look of confusion melted into a heart-warmin' smile that was far from the others he'd made for me. In that moment I felt the flutter of butterflies in my stomach, but I hid it best with my own smile.

Makoto went back to his work as I closed shop on mine. I'd finished everything but a couple problems for my math paper, yet I blew all my energy on the others. All I wanted to do then was lay in bed and hit the hay.

My bag was packed when I glanced back at Makoto. I paused before opening my mouth. He hovered over the table droopy-eyed, tempted to take a nap. His hand was still going, slowly finishing a sentence with his pencil daring to roll over his thumb and to the ground. I fidgeted in my seat, wanting to wake him up in time for him to catch himself, but the other half of me wanted to watch him as he was. So I kept quiet.

My eyes traced over every curve and shape of his hands as I wondered about what he was thinking of. One of his was poised on the crisp page of his notes and its partner propped his head up by the underside of his cheek. His skin glowed with the dying sunlight coming from the window. He stopped writing the same time his soft green eyes closed. I felt so captivated to every little thing he did: the rise and fall of his chest, the way his hair fell into his eyelashes, his slim fingers that twitched in his sleep.

_Oh, golly, his hands! His warm skin and everything! I wouldn't be surprised if they were twice the size of mine! He could play piano with those fingers!_

Something possessed me to reach out and lay my hand out next to his. I kept telling myself that it was just to confirm if his were any bigger than my bear claws of hands, but I knew it really wasn't true. The rampart of beating in my chest was proof enough that I was falling to temptation. I was so nervous to get close to him, to want to touch him, but I didn't let it stop me. I willed myself to stretch my arm out a little bit more,...just a little bit closer...

When my hand settled right beside his, I bit my lip harder than the last time to hold the panicked steam of breath inside. If I were an anime character I'd have already blown smoke out through my ears, but I kept composed of thoughts so I wouldn't stir him awake. I had definitely crossed a cultural border and on the verge of bursting a personal bubble, but I did not care.

I leaned into the table to get a better look. My hand seemed like Kasumi's tiny ones compared to his. It was natural to find that boys' hands were bigger than girls', but...there was some surprise when it came to his. I could've sworn that his pinky was the same size as my pointer finger, but I didn't have time to clarify.

Minami came bolting in the room like the Road Runner running from the Coyote.

The sound of the door sent Makoto jumping out of his skin and hoppin' from his seat. I gasped a loud as I was about to retreat my hand.

That's when I noticed the warmth of Makoto's hand on mine.

_Ohmigod, it's definitely twice the size! And, hot dang, are his fingers slender!_

My mind raced with so many thoughts, but my body reacted differently. Under his touch my hand went from warm to prickling hot as if...

_As if I were drawn to him. Like I was attracted to him and...there were sparks between us..._

"Ma-Makoto-kun...?"

I wanted his hand off mine, needed it off, really. I didn't want to think that what I felt was anything beyond imaginative. It was too convenient, ironic, but also dangerous. I couldn't believe that he'd ever feel the same thing for me...no matter how much the odds may have been up in the air...

Makoto saw where his hand landed, and then stuttered for an explanation while drawing it back.

"I'm-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright, Makoto-kun. You didn't hurt me," I laughed it off.

"Thank goodness..."

Minami slammed his hands on the end of our table as he tried to stop himself from zooming past us and out the window. The awkward moment was long gone when the manager showed up. And it was the perfect distraction for me.

"Sorry, did I startle you?" he said as his eyes darted between Makoto and I.

"You didn't. It's alright," sighed Makoto.

"But I think you just upset the librarian," I noted.

"Oh, well, y'know, I'm not the best student around, but...uh, that's besides the point. I wanted to talk to you about the team, Samantha-chan."

"'The team'?"

"Yeah. I mentioned some things to Matsuoka-chan and it got me thinking about our team. You see, there's the local swim tournament coming up and if we were going to do something then we should start assigning the big swim strokes to players soon."

"As in...?"

"As in the basic strokes. Like, the freestyle, or the butterfly...?" He gestured his hands with his words to signify his point.

"I...I mean,...it's only been one day that we've gotten to use the pool."

"Which may have been the only day to do warm-ups. The tournament is at the end of June. It's a week from the end of April right now. If we're going to do it, I'd want to talk to the others about it at least by this next week coming up.

"And we also need to get better gear for you girls, too. Going to a store and looking at swimsuits may not be such a bad idea."

I deflated into my seat taking in all of the new info at the speed of light. _First it was a tournament and now it's swimsuits?_

"But the club barely has any funds as it is," I replied.

"Competing in the tournament will bring in money from the school, but only if we can bring back a trophy. As for the swimsuits..."

_We'd have to pay for them ourselves..._

"Lemme think about it." I knew it was a lot to ask from the others, but if we had the funds after winning something then we'd be able to train at a real pool like what the boys were talking about earlier.

"So," Minami huffed as he dropped the topic, "how's it goin' with you guys?...I noticed you were doin' homework together."

"We're fine," I answered before Makoto.

The manager nodded his head, focusing on both of us with a fading grin. I cleared my throat, not wanting to go down the same weird path as before.

"Umm...hey, so, Makoto-kun." I turned to him. "Don't you think that we should check up..on Nanase-kun and...?"

"Oh! Yes! Err...I'm sorry, Minami-san, but it looks like we need to leave soon."

"M'kay, catch you guys later!"

A minute later we left the same way he had gone. The bizzareness dissipated but still lingered around me. I couldn't get my head around how i could talk to my team about a tournament or having them buy their own swimsuits. It seemed like too much to ask of them when we had one day to train under our belts.

Halfway to the locker rooms Makoto disrupted me to see if I were okay.

"Oh. I'm okay...Just overwhelmed, I guess."

"Did you want to tell your team about it?"

"I...I don't think so. I mean, not yet. We've started training, but we do need something to motivate us. But..."

I was confusing myself after that. All of my words were jumbling through my head like kids playin' with building blocks. I didn't even understand what was coming out of my mouth.

My friend held open the girls' locker room door for me as he said, "There's no pressure for you to make a decision right away, if that's what you're worried about."

"Yeah..."

I switched the lights on and smiled at him. "I'll see you out there."

He nodded.

Back on the other side I was going to talk to him some more. I figured maybe consultin' with him would help, but I heard splashing coming from the pool. Thinking I might have to save it for later he and I climbed the small steps to investigate. In the water we found Nanase standing next to Kasumi who gasped for air with her face having been dunked in.

_What in the name of Sam Hill did he do to her?_

"So, how's the progress goin'?" I asked as normally as I could.

"Haru, is everything okay?" Makoto didn't want to try looking past the "situation". At least he saw it and it wasn't my imagination.

"Everything's fine..."

But it wasn't. Kasumi wasn't as good playing his facade as she intended to. She looked at him and said as politely she could, "Thank you for your help, Nanase-san. I should go if I want to home on time."

She clambered out of the pool and hurried to her locker. I had to follow so that I could help. I waved goodbye to the boys before leaving.

Inside the locker rooms Kasumi gingerly put on her clothes as I crossed my arms feeling a "talk" coming on.

"So...how'd it go?"

"It...was okay.."

She bent over to put on her shoes, so I winged it for the real question burning me inside.

"Well..did you feel like it helped?"

"I...I guess..."

_She's breaking down._

"Aww, Kasumi-chan, did something happen?"

My first suspicion was that Nanase said something harsh to her, or that he did dunk her head in the water (however slim that chance was), when she confided to me, "I-...I don't feel like I can do it..."

"What's the problem?"

I waited for her to say it, trying to guess what it was during the silence. But, of course she wouldn't give. She shrugged her shoulders like a hesitant kid.

"Do you want me to tell Nanase that he doesn't have to tutor you anymore?"

I was like a mother threatening to take a child's toy away when I said that. But it almost sounded like Kasumi wasn't interested in getting help from him. After all, what her mother told me was crucial to her and the team. If Kasumi didn't get over her problem as a kid she'd be a tougher nut to crack. I didn't want her to give up, but I didn't want to push her. Kasumi would certainly trust someone she knew better to help her. So, why not me?

"You still want to keep goin?" I asked curiously.

Giving her options was the best bet. Her expression shifted from lost in thought to physically sick. I had no clue what she was thinking. Whatever it was, it helped on my part.

"Y-yes, I do."

"That's the spirit."

I was both proud and at ease. She's a brave sport but everybody has an Achilles' heel, and that heel of hers was going to have to be removed if we were going to stay a team.

At the end of that day I walked her home. She put on a happy face for me, but I couldn't help the inkling of curiousness concernin' her and Nanase. I couldn't be sure of what they did, but I had to let it go. I had to trust that they were getting somewhere with helping her deal with her fear.

* * *

The next few days were good to us. Homework was a mess and I had to study for a test, but I got too busy with my afternoons practicing in the pool. We were able to try the different swimming techniques by day three. That's when I gave some serious thought to whether or not I'd tell them about the tournament. And the swimsuits.

By then it became Friday. We couldn't swim because of the downpour, so suddenly a "brilliant" idea came up that we talk about Ryugazaki's swimming at Nanase's house. I went along with it for the heck of the team, but I didn't know why it had to come to that. Ryugazaki hadn't been getting any better and he was becoming more agitated about it than a beehive being swung at by a baseball bat. Everyone but Ryuko sat around the living room table and started throwing in suggestions on how to help the restless soul. Things like "the water hates him" and "being athletically challenged" flew around. Nagisa asked me personally what my thought was. Besides letting me answer the others went on their own extravaganza of idea. Ryugazaki's rebuttal was snapping.

"That's enough!" He jumped up from his seat. "The problem is the way you guys teach! If I had a proper coach, I would be fine!"

"There is a coach!" Makoto exclaimed.

Their answer was to call up pizza delivery. I witnessed them invite the delivery man in, and I never felt so in sync with Ella than any other day we'd known each other. Both of us were thinking, _What the heck am I seeing? _

Makoto and Nagisa told us that the delivery man used to be their swim coach when they were kids from the old building I found the boys sneakin' into. I didn't think of their "coach" as a teacher. More like he was a family friend or long lost uncle. His sun-colored hair was flipped over on one side, the rest of it shaved. A star dyed brown on the opposite side as he wore ear piercings on the other.

_That's a first for me. The only people I knew with that kind of 'do were some punks from the same grade back in Texas._

Nagisa begged "Goro-chan" to help them teach Ryugazaki, but as the elder man was warning the kid not to eat and talk all at once he spotted Kasumi sitting next to me and squinted at her. She hesitated on her cushion.

"Were you one of my students like those boys?" he asked in his gruff voice.

"N-no...I'm sorry...I don't-don't think...so..."

He studied her a little longer before coming out and announcing, "I got it! You were the little shy girl who waited outside with that sassy little one for Matsuoka!"

The original discussion went a completely new route as everyone huddled closer to talk about the years before. I had no say because I'd never been in Iwatobi until recently, but things began connecting dots for me as they went on. Kasumi used to know Kou because she recognized her on the first day of school. According to her, her only link to Kou's brother was an old friend named "Nanami", who Kasumi's mother told me about. I thought I got all that 'til Nagisa and Ella were tossin' in new things, then Gou apparently was a serial panty puller as a tike who "harrassed" Ella. So in the end I found out the woodchuck actually could chuck wood and that Ella was going to beat the boy's face in. I stopped them right there, telling her, "_Alright, alright, we get you're still upset, _but we need to skip the reunion for now. Coach Sasabe needs to give us advice for helping Ryugazaki-kun."

_Hey, he's the one who started it, and now he can finish it._

But finishing it meant that he fussed over helping the poor thing and gave pathetic excuses. He told us he was too busy to help and then left.

_Now the boys are back to Square One..._

* * *

On Saturday we girls tried racing each other with three lanes to see who could swim how fast. After a lap from all of us and then some I had Minami keep track of our times. It was just about then when Ryugazaki suddenly declared that he knew what his problem was. The entire team and ours swam to him and listened carefully.

"The answer was right under my nose. The answer is..."

"The answer is?" Makoto and Nagisa repeated.

As we stood still in anticipation, he shouted, "My-swimsuit!"

He pointed right at his yellow-flared-multicolored-speedo with his finger gestured to..well, "below the hip", shall I say. Ryugazaki had no idea how "suggestive" that was 'til Ella was laughing so hard she snorted water up her nostrils. It made it worse that he kept pointing at it after the boys climbed out of the pool to talk to him.

"C'mon, Ella, don't laugh," I grunted as she held her gut with fits of giggles.

"How is that not funny?" she heaved with a sigh.

"Because he's been runnin' delirious on why he hasn't been doing well."

"It's not my fault..."

I exhaled. Overhearing the boys talk about fitting swimsuits brought back the topic I'd been saving for a later day. _Seems like now's the time to say it._

"Y'know, there's something I wanted to tell you all."

Ryuko, Ella, and Kasumi focused entirely on me.

I smirked. "We're going shopping tomorrow!"

* * *

With no school on Sunday it was the perfect opportunity to go with the boys to the mall and look for swimsuits. I was reluctant because of what their parents might've said, but everyone showed up on time to take the train, even Ryuko.

I stood with Ella, Ryugazaki, and Makoto on the train while the rest sat down. Ama-sensei didn't want to come, according to Nagisa, so the group's trip couldn't be considered "club-related". I hoped none of the parents were under the distinct impression that us going together was completely innocent.

We got off the train a half-hour later and stood in front of a store called "Sports Zero". I spun towards Nagisa and demanded, "I thought we were going to the mall!"

"It's a mall-sized store, Samantha-chan!" he laughed.

"Well, now it seems like I lied to everybody..."

I folded my arms. So far I felt like I'd be in trouble if someone got home late because of the trip. The rest of the group entered the store as Makoto tagged behind the lines with me.

"Do you want to go in?"

"Yeah. I'm a bit surprised, is all."

"Don't worry. This is a sign that you care a lot about your team."

_Well, if he put it like that..._

"Thanks..."

Ella missed me by a hair when she opened the door to tell us, "Hurry up! You guys don't know what you're missing!"

When she left Makoto hovered over me to see if she hit me.

"I'm fine. Thanks for askin', though."

"Not at all."

Like a gentleman, he opened the door and pointed out where our groups were. I split up from him to check the girls' side as he took to the other direction.

Nagisa was right about the store. It was a swimmers' Nirvana with the whole works" suits, goggles, plastic dummies in nearly every corner. I didn't know where the start. It was like a Cabelas but with less dead, stuffed animals on display.

The girls began pulling hangers from the shelves while Kasumi sat on a bench in front of the dressing rooms. She'd been that way for more than the weekend, but I couldn't help that. It was her choice to sulk and I had to make sure Minami wouldn't be kicked out for peeking at other shoppers trying on suits.

After keeping Minami at bay and changed into two-pieces I thought were cute, Ella called out from the dressing room beside mine, "So, what do you guys think? Is it too tight around the butt or-hey, Minami, I saw that! _Put that bloody phone away before I come over there and shove it up your-"  
_

"Hey, Ella, let's not be so harsh, okay?"

I opened the curtains to make sure she didn't chomp his head off. He slipped his phone back into his pocket as Ella pouted at me in a green and blue bikini piece.

The one i had on was red and orange. I like the transition in color, but I wasn't sure about the swimsuit in general. Seeing that the mood was less tense I asked Ella, "Should I go for a two-piece or one-piece*? I can't decide."

"Can I give just a littl-" pleaded Minami.

"No," Ella shot back. "I don't take advice from drooling messes."

"Maybe he should say it," I countered. "It looks like he's suffering enough. Look at him twitch...Is he turning a different color?"

"It's more like a creepy nervous tic."

So I went for back up.

"Ryuko-san, will you help me out over here?"

She leaned out in between her curtain and room and drew it open.

"I don't see any issue in it, should he have a perfectly logical and pure purpose."

"But this is Minami we're talkin' about!"

"I'm takin' that as a two-to-one vote in favor for him. Have at it skipper," I said.

Had I known what I had gotten into, I wasn't sure if I would've let him do it like I was sure about anything up to that point. Lil' Speed Race made a dash to separate aisles of women's suits and came back holding four different pieces.

"For Ella-chan I recommend this yellow-and black two piece a part of this moderately-priced yet exclusive collection from this chain store. The straps are thin and the bottom part is more like a pair of boxer short for your tomboyish figure. It won't weight you down and orange is a better color for your skin. Too much of that or yellow would make you look like a banana, or worse-jaundice. So the black fixes that problem.

"And for the others the same line as mentioned. Samantha-chan, a springtime green and black two-piece with a bikini bottom and thicker straps for the upper half. It's not as tight as a bra strap but it'll hold firm. The green brings out the color of your eyes but will also blend the look of your curves. Too much curve will make you look like a poorly-drawn anime character.

"Ryuko-san, a one-piece with thin straps that curve over the neck to show off your shoulders, but also give a little space to move around in. The lavender on the stomach is thin material, almost like netting, which shows a little skin yet keeps the modestly. And the black over the hips makes you look more curvy.

"And for Kasumi-chan, a one piece with a V-neck and open back that teases with your small bust but sits snug on your chest so water doesn't sink you down. The baby blue is more or less a flattering color for you. It's cute and moe, but the black around the bottom, stomach, and back balance out the seriousness and playfulness."

In two breaths he gave us a detailed description of the best swimsuits he had to offer. The whole group was frozen with shock for a minute. He handed each of us his swimsuits before chugging a bottle of water like his life depended on it. I was...Whew...speechless...

"_Oh my God...Hon', I don't know whether to kiss ya' or slap ya'," _I gasped after I blinked the moment away.

Ella was in disbelief. "_Sam, pinch me. I think I'm dreaming. I just imagined Minami saying something amazingly brilliant yet creepy."_

_"Ella, he did just say something smart!"_

"I'll vouch for that." Ryuko dipped behind her curtain and changed into the suit as we waited for the results.

She came out and replied, "It's exactly as he said. And it's just the right size."

_Now I'm curious. _Ella and I were the next ones to try 'em out. We crowded the outside mirror to see what we looked like with them on.

"_Sweet baby Jesus, I look fantastic!" _I squeaked.

Green was a great color on me. The two piece felt comfortable like warm pajamas and fit just right. _But how...?_

"Minami-kun, how'd you know so much about swimsuits?"

"Well, what you guys call 'creepy' I call a 'future'. My dream is to become a designer for swimwear, so I've studied a lot in my free time.

"Now, can you turn this way so I can take a pi-"

Ella growled, "Just when I thought you could redeem yourself."

The last person left was Kasumi. All of us nearly shoved her tiny buns into an empty room to try her suit on. When she came out I had to hold me excite back. She looked so cute and mo...whatever Minami said.

She stood in front of the mirror as I walked around to look at her.

"The v-neck does give you a bigger chest. Oh, but you look so cute!"

I danced in circles with her hopping like a rabbit. The moment was brief before the boys joined in.

"Don't they look cute?" Nagisa asked his group as they stopped to gaze.

"Don't encourage our manager," hissed Ella.

"You all do look very good," Makoto said.

His eyes landed on me as he complimented us. I blushed, feeling my heart beat frantically.

"Thanks," I replied, "it's all because of Minami-kun. He's the genius behind all of this."

Makoto flashed a little pearly white a' teeth at me as he smiled. I did the same, but I was too over confident. Being giddy and flirty-like wasn't a good combo for me.

"Well, I'm gonna get changed. Are you boys finished?"

"Yep!" answered Nagisa. "We found a great swimsuit for Rei-chan!"

"Cool!"

Before we left the store I talked to Kasumi regarding her cute baby-blue suit. She said she didn't have enough allowance to buy it, so thinking that I'd be generous I offered to lend her money if she wanted it that badly. Poor Kasumi was caught in the cross fire of being polite and being selfless. Ryuko and Minami stayed out of it, but Ella didn't care to watch her friend blow a cog in her head with thought. She huffed at Kasumi to "give up being polite for once and buy something awesome for yourself". I would've told her to lay off because of her tone but Kasumi agreed to take me up on my off. After I gave her the money she thanked me over many a' time like I gave her a gift from God. I was happy to see that she appreciated being doted on, but my empty wallet was going to suffer the wrath of Grandma when I'd get back home.

* * *

I called it. As punishment for spending all of my money I had to get groceries that were for the next two weeks, meaning that I had a lot to lug home. It didn't make sense to be punished for buying something then buy more things, but Grandma slammed the door in my face and hollered for me to, "Just go get those things on the list before getting your hide tanned in public!".

It wasn't all that bad. I could wander around town for a little bit as I headed to the market. The street corners were short and sidewalks too long that I thought for sure I'd get lost. Unlike other times I'd been out I had a time limit, but chose to ignore it. The town was quiet, peaceful, and I could see why Grandma and Grandpa wanted to move back here after so many years. In Texas we had lots of neighbors and friends visit or invite us to cook-outs on their front yards. People like my grandparents needed a break from that after so long.

I made it to the market and rummaged through an aisle of noodles and rice. Grandma would've called it the "carb section" and had a fit about how much someone should have daily, so I was glad it was just me there. On the list she wanted a brand she labeled as "the one with a farmer on it", but I wasn't having any luck finding it. _That kind of description wasn't as helpful for Pete's sake._

I tried glossing over each bag one at a time with my finger on the labels. Up to the middle of the shelf I figured it was useless, but suddenly I bumped shoulders with someone with familiar long fingers and big brass knuckles. He and I jumped at the same time to face each other, and I was met with gorgeous green eyes.

"Hey!..Makoto-kun!" I greeted with a friendly grin. "Shopping, too?"

"Oh, yeah," he breathed. "Just an errand for my parents."

"Grandma," I said with my thumb to my chest.

"Are you almost done then?"

"No, I just got started."

"You don't mind carrying the rice with you for that long?"

"It depends on if I can find it," I laughed. "I know the brand, but it looks like they don't have it here."

I raised the sheet of paper my grandma gave me to him. He eyes paged over it before he told me, "Oh. That brand is on this end of the shelf."

There were two more sitting at his end. I tugged one of them out from their corner and sat it over my right shoulder. Out of nowhere Makoto exclaimed, "On your shoulder?! You aren't worried about hurting yourself like that?"

"I've carried tons of stuff over my shoulder. I'm used to it."

"Let me carry it for you."

_Hah?_

"You'd do that for me..?"

"I-It's proper for a guy to carry the heavy things for a woman, isn't it?"

"I...o-okay."

He took the bag from me and held it in his arms. I wasn't sure I was comfortable with him doing that for me, so I grabbed his crate and told him I'd hold onto the rest. He hesitated, but I promised him that if he did something for me, then I'd do something in return for him.

In the end he agreed, and after paying for my groceries at the counter Makoto still insisted that he'd carry my things for me. It was definitely strange to me for a guy to wait on me like that. Not even Brandon did that, so I thought it was bizarre for any guy to offer such a gesture. Except for Daddy, of course. He did that because he didn't want his baby girls to strain ourselves.

"Do you ever get tired of being so nice?"

He and I were walked by the edge of town when I asked him something that randomly came to me. Makoto peered over his shoulder at me with a befuddled look.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm just saying...I never knew anyone so polite, so kind like you. Besides family, I mean!"

"You were never treated that way with your friends?"

In all honesty, I was the one who gave help instead of getting it. And from my former friends I was taken for granted in return...I never asked, but then again, no one ever offered anyway.

"Let's just say...I had different experiences in America."

"I'm-I'm sorry if I tread on your past or-"

"No. Don't be. I'm here now, so I'm glad you're here with me."

He blushed tenderly as he held his fist to his mouth, clearing his throat.

"Umm..sorry. I didn't want to-"

"No. It's okay...Thank you...And, I feel honored that I could be different for you."

His smile was calming, fresh. I tucked away a strand of hair behind my ear as I returned the favor. On the inside I could never get tired of his kind expression. It was a good kind of weird for me to be treated like a lady. And I certainly wouldn't get tired of smiling back at him, neither.

"Wait a minute." Makoto stopped by the beach side. "Isn't that Kasumi-chan and Haru?"

I followed his attention to the shore where two figures were standing close together. One had a skirt and twin tails and the other had indigo hair.

"Is that you, Kasumi-chan?" I didn't wait for them to notice us. I got scared that she was in shock standing in the water.

Makoto then hollered, "Haru, what are you doing in the water?"

"Showing Misuzu-chan something," was the response he got.

"Are you two cold? You know the sun's almost gone?" I pointed out.

Kasumi tried trudging through the water after glancing back at the sunlight. She almost fell over at the first step.

"Is she okay?" I asked out loud.

She said something to Nanase. Then in return he picked her up like a doll and carried her to the sidewalk. All I could think was, _That was your solution? If you're going to do it you need to carry her like a princess, dangit! _

"Alright, let's head...on back."

I recovered from that..moment in a second so that I could check Kasumi for any sign of trauma. Makoto was busy talking with his friend so I insisted, "You sure you're okay, Kasumi-chan?"

"I'm fine. Actually, I'm better than ever."

She stared out to the beach as I squinched my brows. _I may not know what Nanase did, but whatever it was seemed to work..._

Though, I also hoped that Kasumi wouldn't crumple onto the sidewalk on the way home.

* * *

Monday was a slow day for us at the pool. Ryugazaki still couldn't get over his "sinking" problem and Kasumi was as off as she had been since Sunday evening. It was a calm weird, but very not her, if that made any sense. Ella and Ryuko were doing well with the effort we were making, so I didn't have a lot to complain about. I considered bringing light to the tournament at the next day's practice, but with Kasumi's new issue diving I wasn't sure if I should've. Nanase told Makoto and I the problem during lunch in the corner before anyone met us on the roof. I asked if there was any chance of her improving soon, and he answered, "Maybe". "Maybe" didn't comfort me It was a slim bargain that couldn't promise me much of anything.

That in mind, I decided as I got changed in the locker room Tuesday afternoon that I'd go ahead and tell them. If Kasumi could handle pressure, then I wouldn't regret giving her a push that time to advance.

"Samantha-chan!" Kasumi called out as she walked in the locker room. "I have something to show you!"

"Is it my birthday present?" Because I really hope it's as awesome as you say it is!" yipped Ella.

That particular Tuesday also happened to be Ella's birthday. The past few days she'd been "hinting" to it during lunch, but ironically I forgot.

"I-Let's consider it as your present!"

"What's with the sudden change of tone?!" demanded the blond.

I directed my attention to the one teammate who wasn't talking about birthday presents.

"Ready?" I conveyed to Ryuko.

"Oh, yes. And I believe Ryugazaki-san has something important to show everyone as well."

"Really?" _Was it me or is this afternoon feeling like it's gonna be full of surprises?_

She nodded and motioned her arm towards the door. I ushered all the girls out so we could see what the "surprise" was for the team, falling behind Nagisa, Kou, and Makoto outside by the stairs.

"Somebody's swimming butterfly," Kou claimed as I stepped next to Makoto.

"Is that Haru-chan?" quipped Nagisa.

"But Haru only does free," mentioned Makoto.

"So then...?" Ella pushed.

"It's not me."

I skidded on the step I took on the stairs. Haru came up out of the blue scaring the daylights out of us.

"Then that means...?" said Gou-kun.

"Rei-chan?!"

By the third board Ryugazaki thrusted his swim cap off as he caught his breath. The entire group squirmed to take the stairs and catch up to Ryugazaki. His team crowded his side as they panicked to get an answer, but I was curious as to how Ryuko knew about him swimming in the pool beforehand. I could've sworn she got in the same I did.

"Well, I guess it worked out in the end," sighed the other captain.

"Umm...everybody?" Kasumi drew attention on herself. "There's one thing I'd like to share with you...if that's alright..."

"Go on ahead, hon'," I permitted with a smile.

She took to the fifth board and peeked over at Nanase. He blinked at her, and then she leaned out and dove into the water.

_She did it! And Nanase said she was struggling for so long on it! _

"Kasumi-chan! You did it!" I cheered.

"Her dive's as pretty as Haru-chan's!" Nagisa replied.

"Well, this is a different kind of birthday present than I expected...A card would've been good, too."

"_Oh, hush up, you! You know I woulda' bought you somethin' if I knew it was your birthday today!" _I grumbled to Ella.

"_Sure, but I've been dropping hints like a dog does on someone's yard."_

I had to roll my eyes at that.

"Well, anywho, since the boys seem to know who's swimming what, and since we've been doing well practicing, I wanted to know which one of you calls dibs on which stroke. For the road ahead there's the freestyle, back, breast, and butterfly."

"Yeah, well, I lost a damn bet to Hazuki, so I'm signing up for breaststroke," said the birthday girl.

"I believe in order to hone my arm strength I'd specialize in the butterfly," Ryuko told me.

That left Kasumi.

"Well, it's all down to us." I turned to my friend. "What do you wanna do?"

"I-"

She creased her brows and pinched her lips together. Of all things she prepped for over the last week and one of them wasn't which swim style she wanted to do. _Or maybe Nanase was focusing away from that to work on everything else with her._

Makoto and the boys came over to listen in. Their captain suggested the easier course would have been to choose the backstroke, but for some reason I wanted her not to take it. It seemed like jealously boiling in me for her to share something of Makoto's if she agreed. And I'd never been jealous of anything...Not that I'd remembered...

Minami countered Makoto by telling Kasumi to go for freestyle. "I know that your swimsuit can withstand a lot, despite the open back and bare shoulders, so you should gun it and go for freestyle. Your skinny, tiny figure would also help with your speed."

Ella mumbled to Ryuko about something as I reminded Kasumi, "I'll go with whatever you decide, like I promised."

Kasumi dipped her chin.

"I-I wanna do..."

We were all on the edge of our toes.

"Freestyle..!"

"That's that then!" I laughed. "Looks like I'll be doin' the backstroke."

"Wow, it 's very admirable that you want to take another leap in your progress, Misuzu-chan," replied Makoto.

"Oh...I dunno...but, thank you, Tachibana-kun."

No way was I gonna feel jealous. I turned the focus to the pool as the day was gettin' old. For the practice I held a race again to see who could do their own stroke the fastest. As usual, Minami kept the records.

Kasumi and Ella had a tie for the best time in our final lap, so I had to flip a coin to appoint the real winner. Ella's call on tails made her champ, but Kasumi wasn't broken up about it. She stuck behind to talk to Nanase so I knew she was okay.

"Looks like your team is almost ready to face the tournament," Makoto joked as he caught me watching our teammates from below the staircase.

"Well, almost," I chuckled. "How about yours?"

"After that surprise I'd say we have a lot more confidence now."

"That's good..."

I focused on him as I swung back to the locker doors.

"Y'know, I've been meaning to tell you something since that day in the library."

"Hmm? About what?"

I smiled. "You're kind...and you have so much hope. And I respect you for that. Frankly, it's something I've been working on in myself for...awhile. But..I want you to know you shouldn't ever let anyone trample over that. It's too precious to lose these days..."

"Samantha-...chan.."

A tiny speckle of a tear came to my eyes. I brushed the knuckle of my thumb over it to hide the stupidly emotional urge flooding through me. I couldn't get hold of myself to say something from the heart anyone without breaking down...

"I'm...gonna get changed..."

I didn't wait for him to comment. If I were going to cry I'd do it out of hindsight like in the locker room. Ella and Ryuko already left by the time I opened my locker. Having some peace to do whatever I leaned my forehead onto my locker and sucked in some deep breaths.

_Just let it pass. You don't need to cry...It'll make things worse...Think-calm-thoughts!_

Changing back into my school uniform was soothing enough. I regained composure and set out to go straight home once I'd grabbed my things...Was what I assumed until I did walk out the doors and saw Makoto waiting at the bottom step for me.

_Oh, fiddlesticks..._

"Samantha-chan.."

I climbed down more stairs while putting on the best "me" face I knew I had.

"Makoto-kun, what's up?"

"You're very kind, too. But I don't know if you know it."

"Oh, please...I-I.."

"I don't want to make you upset. So please understand that what I said before about you comes from the heart...And there's a lot more that I haven't shared with you, too. "

My whole body had blown up in mental flames. I wasn't sure how to react, but I was more than touched. I felt blessed. But the beating in my chest didn't simmer down, either.

"Samantha-chan...?"

"M-Mm-hm?"

"Would you like to go to the library with me? Our friends might be an hour."

So I responded with a smile that used every ounce of joy I owned, "I'd like that."

Makoto's smile expressed as much as mine. I walked beside him a little closer than normal, and when our hands gently brushed the other I felt a tiny spark of hope, of excitement, of something that made my heart race for him that I found myself grinning to.

"Oh, are you thirsty? There's a vending machine nearby."

"I could use a drink. Which one's your favorite, by the way?"

"Hmm...maybe the melon soda? But I also like the strawberry banana drink..."

"Really? I've only tried the melon one."

"Then how about we get the strawberry banana one together?"

"Sure!"


End file.
